Parents who caused death of buried boy jailed – BBC News

‘A couple whose severely malnourished son’s body was found buried in the garden of their former home have been jailed.’

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BBC News, 12th December 2024

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Soul Survivor – Actions and Recommendations – Law & Religion UK

‘On 10 December 2024, the Diocese of St Albans published its action plan in response to the Independent Review into Soul Survivor by Fiona Scolding KC. Building on its initial response from 26 September, the plan outlines changes to be implemented within the Diocese and recommendations for the wider Church of England. Developed over three months of engagement with diocesan governance bodies, the response is issued by the Senior Staff Team. The Press Release is reproduced below, and the full response is here.’

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Law & Religion UK, 13th December 2024

Source: lawandreligionuk.com

Puberty blockers to be banned indefinitely for under-18s across UK – The Guardian

Posted December 12th, 2024 in children, emergency powers, gender, medical treatment, news, transgender persons by sally

‘Puberty blockers for under-18s with gender dysphoria will be banned indefinitely across the UK except for use in clinical trials, Labour has announced.’

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The Guardian, 11th December 2024

Source: www.theguardian.com

Father and stepmother of 10-year-old Sara Sharif found guilty of her murder – The Guardian

Posted December 12th, 2024 in child abuse, children, families, murder, news by sally

‘Sara Sharif’s father and stepmother have been found guilty of her murder, as questions are now raised over missed opportunities to save the 10-year-old.’

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The Guardian, 11th December 2024

Source: www.theguardian.com

Allegations of alienating behaviour – important new guidance published – Transparency Project

Posted December 11th, 2024 in child abuse, children, divorce, families, family courts, news by sally

‘The Family Justice Council (FJC) has published guidance for Family Court judges and those working in the Family Justice System, on responding to allegations of alienating behaviour.’

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Transparency Project, 11th December 2024

Source: transparencyproject.org.uk

Sex Education actor Alexander Westwood found guilty of raping teenagers in acting class – The Independent

Posted December 11th, 2024 in abuse of position of trust, child abuse, children, news, rape, sexual offences by sally

A “manipulator and predatory” actor who starred in Netflix show Sex Education has been found guilty of more than two dozen sex offences, including against children.

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The Independent, 10th December 2024

Source: www.independent.co.uk

New guidance on ‘parental alienation’ in family court battles – BBC News

‘Family courts in England and Wales should give more weight to allegations of domestic abuse than to claims of “parental alienation”, according to new guidance.’

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BBC News, 11th December 2024

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Mother confronts her son’s killers in court – BBC News

‘The mother of a boy who was stabbed to death confronted his killers in court as they were jailed for his murder.’

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BBC News, 5th December 2024

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

The fictional kingdom of couple who buried son in garden – BBC News

‘Abiyah died in 2020 following a respiratory infection. This was not the full extent of his poor health. He was in a severely malnourished state and suffered with a list of other problems. Only when his body was exhumed by police in 2022 did the scale of his parents’ neglect emerge.’

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BBC News, 5th December 2024

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Brianna Ghey killer Eddie Ratcliffe loses appeal to shorten sentence based on ‘immaturity’ – The Independent

‘Lawyers for Eddie Ratcliffe, who was 15 at the time of the killing but is now 17, asked for the length of his sentence to be reduced, claiming the judge had failed to take into account his “lack of maturity”.’

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The Independent, 5th December 2024

Source: www.independent.co.uk

Are anonymity orders involving protected parties in peril? – 7BR

Posted December 5th, 2024 in anonymity, children, elderly, mental health, news, reporting restrictions by sally

‘The very detailed judgment citing the extensive caselaw in this area in the case of PMC (a child by his mother and litigation friend FLR) v A Local Health Board on 22nd November 2024 [2024] EWHC 2969 (KB) could have very important implications for what solicitors should do when issuing proceedings and particularly those proceedings involving protected parties.’

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7BR, 29th November 2024

Source: www.7br.co.uk

Unpublished guidance and housing allocation schemes – Local Government Lawyer

Posted December 4th, 2024 in children, families, housing, judicial review, local government, news by sally

‘A recent bid for judicial review concerned the inconsistency between a council’s unpublished guidance and its housing allocations scheme. Jeremy Ogilvie-Harris analyses the outcome.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 4th December 2024

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Judge refuses permission for judicial review of age assessment, finding it was carried out in accordance with Welsh Government toolkit – Local Government Lawyer

Posted December 3rd, 2024 in asylum, benefits, children, housing, judicial review, local government, news, young persons by sally

‘The High Court has refused permission to challenge by way of judicial review an age assessment carried out by social workers employed by a Welsh council, which concluded that the claimant was an adult.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 2nd December 2024

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Child Maintenance and Mortgage Payments – New Guidance: LM v SSWP & NM [2024] UKUT 259 (AAC) – Financial Remedies Journal

‘What happens if the Child Maintenance Service (CMS) has determined that a non-resident parent (NRP) is required to pay child maintenance to the parent-with-care (PWC), but payments are also being made towards the mortgage secured on the property in which PWC still lives with the qualifying child/children (QC)? Does it matter if the property is jointly owned by NRP and PWC? Will those mortgage payments reduce the amount of child maintenance?’

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Financial Remedies Journal, 29th November 2024

Source: financialremediesjournal.com

Shared parental leave ‘failing working families’ – BBC News

Posted December 2nd, 2024 in children, employment, equality, families, maternity leave, news, paternity leave by sally

‘A decade on from the introduction of a landmark scheme aimed at helping new parents share childcare, campaigners say shared parental leave is failing the working families it was designed to help.’

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BBC News, 2nd December 2024

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Watchdog ‘appalled’ by use of restraint on autistic children at London school – The Guardian

‘The children’s commissioner for England has called for an urgent review of the use of restraint and “calming rooms” after leaked CCTV footage showed autistic children being pushed into a padded space where they were left distressed, self-harming and sitting in vomit.’

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The Guardian, 27th November 2024

Source: www.theguardian.com

MPs back plans for phased smoking ban – BBC News

Posted November 27th, 2024 in bills, children, government departments, health, news, smoking by sally

‘MPs have backed plans to make it illegal for anyone currently aged 15 or younger to ever buy cigarettes in the UK.’

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BBC News, 26th November 2024

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Mother of child hidden in drawer from birth jailed – BBC News

Posted November 27th, 2024 in child cruelty, child neglect, children, families, imprisonment, news, sentencing by sally

‘A mother who kept her baby daughter hidden in a drawer for the first three years of her life has been jailed for seven years and six months for “extreme neglect”.’

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BBC News, 26th November 2024

Source: www.bbc.co.uk

Judge rejects application by local authority for declaration in dispute between council and health board over responsibility for care of 15 year old – Local Government Lawyer

‘A High Court judge has rejected a local authority’s application for a declaration from the court that because a vulnerable young person was detainable under the provisions of the Mental Health Act 1983, the court did not have jurisdiction to grant a Deprivation of Liberty (DoL) order pursuant to the inherent jurisdiction.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 25th November 2024

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

Asylum seeker granted permission to apply for judicial review of age assessment – Local Government Lawyer

Posted November 26th, 2024 in asylum, children, judicial review, local government, news, young persons by sally

‘A High Court judge has given an Eritrean asylum seeker permission to seek judicial review of an age assessment carried out by Warrington Borough Council, and ordered the local authority to provide her with appropriate support on an interim basis.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 25th November 2024

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk