Child and Family Agency and KC & Anor (Care Order - Proportionality)

• Judge: Daly J.
• Judgment Date: 22 August 2014
• Neutral Citation: [2014] IEDC 12
• Case Outcome: Approved
• Court: District Court (Ireland)
• Date: 22 August 2014

[2014] IEDC 12

AN CHUIRT DUICHE THE DISTRICT COURT

CHILD AND FAMILY AGENCY

APPLICANT

-AND-

KC

FIRST NAMED RESPONDENT

AND

GG

SECOND NAMED RESPONDENT

Child Care Act 1991 – Section 18 (1)

CARE ORDER

In the matter of Child S, a child

22 August 2014

1. This is the Child and Family Agency’s (CFA) application for a c are order in respect of Child S until he/she reaches his/her age of

majority at eighteen years of age.

2. The mother and fat her of Child S have been served wit h notice o f this applicat ion and were in attendanc e at court and legally

represented. The mother consented t o a c are order being granted for Child S until he/she reaches his/her age of majority at eighteen

years of age or such order of shorter duration as the c ourt may determine. The father c onsented t o a c are order enduring for a period

of three ye ars and suggested t his is a more proportionate order to grant in this c ase.

Brief Background

3. The bac kground to this family may be summarised in the following manner. The mother has during her childhood been in the c are of

the st ate and has a history of subst ance misuse, mental health difficulties and homelessness since her teenage years. She has

suffered dramatic events in her life since that time and in 2010 her three older children were rece ived into the c are of the Health

Service Execut ive (as it w as then) and t he children were placed w ith their grandmother where t hey remain.

4. The mother beca me pregnant with Child S in September 2012 and Child S was born in March 2013. Child S was treated f or serious

drug withdrawal symptoms shortly aft er his/her birth. Child S was rec eived into t he care of the Health Servic e Executive in April 2013

prior to his/her discharge from hospital in April 2013. He/she has been plac ed since then in the c are of his grand aunt a nd her

husband.

5. Since April 2013 the mother has attended at a loc al drug treatment fac ility with varying degrees of engagement and relatively little

succ ess. Various incidents are rec orded by the social work department which give rise to conc erns in the relation to t he mother's

emotional stability and instances at her home which raise serious questions about her ability t o act as a protect ive fact or for any

child that might be in her care. The mother’s engagement with the soc ial work department has varied considerably during this time

and she has failed to engage with an ass essment of her ca pacity t o parent.

6. The mother did not disclose the identity of Child S’s father until November 2013 and his paternity was confirmed in April 2014. The

mother and father completed a st atutory dec laration appointing the fat her as a joint guardian of Child S with t he mother during the

course of the hearing.

7. The f ather himself has a history of drug misuse and addiction of long-st anding. I have heard evidence t hat the father is c urrently

being investigated for serious drug offenc es although no c harge has yet bee n made. The mother and father appear to continue t o be

unstable in their drug use.

8. The mother’s att endance at acc ess visits with Child S has been sporadic and inc onsistent. T he father commenced a ttendanc e with

Child S in April 2014. His att endance has been consist ent and of relatively good quality. The father is seeking an increase in ac cess

between him and Child S. The CFA is of the opinion that t his is not in Child S’s interest at this time. The s ocial worker has expressed

her conce rn regarding the fa ther’s acc eptance of Child S’s care s tatus and frustration at the soc ial work system which appear to

have manifested themselves during recent ac cess visits.

The CFA case in summary

9. The CFA case may be summarised in the f ollowing terms: Child S needs permanency and stability in order for him/her to lead a

happy and healthy life. Child S’s emotional, social and physical welfare has bee n and is likely to be avoidably impaired if he/she were

to be ret urned to the c are of his/her parents. The CFA is of the profes sional opinion that neither the mother nor the fat her are in a

position to meet Child S’s care needs.

The Mothers Case in summary

10. The mother's case may be summarised as follows: s he consent s to a care order for Child S until he reaches his/her majority or in

the alternative consents to a care order of shorte r duration if the court should so determine. She requests a full review in two years

to allow her to progress in her drug rehabilitation and parenting capac ity and to engage in treatment for her mental health difficulties.

Counsel for the mother has indicated it is the mother's intention to a pply to discharge t he care order aft er two years. During this time

she intends to commit to drug treatment at an addiction service facility, at tending acc ess, engaging with a parental capac ity