Child contact pilot?

According to the New Law Journal of 31 October, ministers are considering an ‘early intervention’ pilot scheme that could potentially stop 75% of child contact cases reaching a court hearing. High risk or complicated cases would be dealt with separately and parents informed at the outset of the possible outcome if the case went to court. Parents would be obliged to take part in education classes and contact-focussed mediation. The project is likely to be piloted in three areas, including the Inner London Family Proceedings Court commencing in early 2004. The scheme is based on similar US models which resolve cases in a few weeks and have led to a 75% reduction in the number of cases going to a hearing.