Public Law Outline

Introduction:

  • The Public Law Outline (‘PLO’) replaced, on 1st April 2008, the existing Protocol for Judicial Case Management in Public Law Children Act Cases.
  • It aims to reduce the need for care proceedings and to speed up those that are necessary.
  • A key change to the system is that councils must do much more of the work before the case gets to court, including kinship and residential assessments.
  • On 1 April 2008, following the Review of the Child Care Proceedings System in England and Wales, the following legislation became effective:
    a) Revised statutory guidance (Volume 1 ‘Court Orders’ of the Children Act guidance) under section 7 of the Local Authority Social Services Act 1970, issued by DCSF and the Welsh Assembly Government
    b) A new Public Law Outline (PLO), replacing the current Protocol for Judicial Case Management in Public Law Children Act Cases

Workshop Aims:

  • The workshop is designed as a guide to practitioners and social workers alike regarding the procedural steps that need to be undertaken as part of the PLO outline.
  • The workshop will seek to address some of the key questions that have been raised about the revised statutory guidance for local authorities and the Public Law Outline.
  • The workshop will take delegates through a series of hypothetical scenarios that might arise in public law children’s work.
  • In groups, delegates will work through case studies that are typical of those faced in practice.