Woman awarded damages after son ‘unlawfully taken from her care’

By The Press Association23rd September 2015News EnglandChild Protection, Childrens Services, Local Authorities, London, News England

A woman with mental health difficulties has been awarded £3,000 damages after a judge concluded that her son had been unlawfully taken from her care by local authority social services officials.

Judge Judith Rowe said the boy, now nine, had been placed into foster care for about a month by staff at the London Borough of Brent after his mother suffered a mental health “relapse” and was taken to hospital.

She said the woman had not been told what had happened until some days later.

The woman had taken legal action claiming that the youngster was wrongly removed by a social worker without her consent – or the permission of a judge.

Lawyers for Brent Council argued that officials had acted lawfully.

But Judge Rowe has ruled in the woman’s favour after analysing the case at a private family court hearing in London.

The judge said the council should pay the woman £3,000 damages.

Detail of the case has emerged in a ruling by the judge published on a legal website.

She said the boy and his mother could not be identified.

Social services staff had been alerted when the woman was taken to hospital, the judge heard.

A social worker had concerns about the boy being left with a neighbour, was told that no other family members were available and concluded that it was necessary to place the youngster into foster care.

“I accept that the removal of (the boy) took place in good faith and that removal would almost certainly have been sanctioned by the court had the local authority applied,” said the judge. “However … the removal was unlawful.”

She said the woman needed to be compensated and added: ” The unlawful removal of a child amounts to interference with one of the most fundamental of rights, namely that of respect for family life.

“(The boy) was removed not simply without lawful authority but without the mother even being told that it had happened until some days afterwards.

“Her poor health does not justify this sequence of events.”