Applications for child care and supervision orders have plummeted by 25% since councils were forced to bear the full cost of court fees, prompting fears that vulnerable children are being inappropriately placed with relatives instead, the Gazette can reveal.

Just 1,611 applications were made by councils in England and Wales between the beginning of April and the end of July, according to figures from the Children and Family Court Advisory Support Service (Cafcass). This compares with 2,160 in the same period last year and 2,284 between April and July 2006.

Since May, councils have been obliged to foot the bill for child care proceedings as part of a government drive to make the courts entirely self-funding through fees. The move has resulted in a 2,500% hike in costs, with child care proceedings rising from £150 to £4,825.

Anthony Douglas, chief executive of Cafcass, told the Gazette that Section 20 agreements – where children are placed with grandparents or other relatives – ‘went up by several hundred’ in the same period.

‘Care applications have dropped significantly… I am concerned about the drop because it’s too large to be complacent about,’ he said.

Douglas added that the use of Section 20 agreements – voluntary arrangements between parents and local authorities that do not come under court scrutiny and can be rescinded by the parent at any time – should be kept under review.

He stressed, however, that there was no evidence councils’ decisions on care proceedings would be influenced by fee rates and pointed out that the introduction of enhanced case assessment and preparation requirements would delay ­applications.Christina Blacklaws, partner at London firm Blacklaws Davis and Law Society council member for child law, said: ‘You just can’t tell me that fewer children are being neglected or abused.

It all adds up to a very worrying picture.

‘I am absolutely worried about the well-being of children without the framework of court scrutiny that enables parents to get the support and resources to make changes.’

Sunita Mason, chairwoman of the Law Society’s family law committee, said vulnerable children could be ‘missed’ by the authorities if they were out of reach of the legal system.

A spokesman for the Local Government Association (LGA), which represents 466 councils in England and Wales, denied that the fall in applications was because of higher court fees. He claimed the decline – which the LGA expects to be temporary – was attributable to the introduction of new practices and increased case assessment and preparation.

A Ministry of Justice spokesperson said: ‘New statutory guidance... requires local authorities to ensure all other safe options, such as wider kinship care, have been explored before issuing an application. We are not aware of any evidence to suggest that cases are not getting to court that should do so.’