FEES: investigation finds only 'lack of knowledge and/or apprehension' over reforms


The judiciary has added its voice to alarm over Courts Service plans to increase by 3,000% the cost to local authorities of care proceedings.



The Council of Circuit Judges said it has investigated whether local authorities are able to take advantage of the extra money provided to pay for the fees, and 'found only lack of knowledge and/or apprehension'.



'Regrettably, the lack of ring-fencing gives us apprehension about whether cases will not be brought when they should have been,' the council said in its response to the Courts Service consultation. 'It may be unlawful for local authorities not to carry out their responsibilities to children, but money cannot cease to be a consideration when important decisions have to be taken against the background of stretched resources in relation to staff as well as finance. We have been told that the city of Birmingham estimates its budget for starting proceedings would increase from £37,500 to £1.5 million.'



The council also said the consultation was wrong to assume that care proceedings are regularly brought unnecessarily or prematurely. 'We wish to state in the strongest possible terms that circuit judges in ?general have no significant experience at all of care proceedings being brought for no good reason.'



The Association of District Judges added: 'The association fails to understand why the outcome of the consultation has effectively been predetermined with the increased cost of public law fees having already been transferred to local authorities from 2008/09. The major worry is that local authorities appear to be unaware of extra funds being made available to meet the increased court fees. We are therefore concerned that the scheme will be a significant disincentive to local authorities... to start public law care proceedings.'



In another critical response, the Family Justice Council said: 'It is difficult to avoid the suspicion that the proposals are actually designed, at least in part, to reduce the number of applications for care orders when the paper refers to the increased fees as an "incentive to use services economically and efficiently".'



From 1 May local authorities will be charged £2,225 instead of £150 for issuing proceedings to put a child into care. The Association of Lawyers for Children has calculated the cost of a fully contested case at £5,225. The Courts Service says children will be protected by local authorities' statutory duty to issue care proceedings, while efficiently-run cases will attract lower fees.



Neil Rose