Judicial Control over care orders

In Re W and B (Children: Care Plan) In Re W (Child: Care Plan) CA TLR 7 June 2001

Prior to the implementation of the Children Act 1989 one of the characteristics of the wardship regime was the ability of the local authority to share with the judge the responsibility for decisions that were either agonisingly difficult or that would be acutely painful to the parents. There were undoubtedly many cases in which local authorities found the availability of the judge as the decision-maker supportive, not only at the point of trial, but also in the subsequent implementation of the judgment reached at trial.