Ministers ‘grandstanding’ over parental access proposals

College of Social Work and BASW criticise government plans to rewrite law on the rights of absent fathers to contact their children

Social work organisations have criticised the government’s decision to enshrine in law the rights of divorced and separated fathers to see their children, as part of an overhaul of the family justice system.

Claire Barcham, professional practice development adviser at The College of Social Work said her organisation has “reservations” about legislating for a right of contact, because this could lead to prolonged legal disputes between the parents over contact time which could run counter to a child’s best interest.

“If there is to be a legal right, it is especially important that social workers are well placed to carry out a full assessment of the child’s best interests,” she said.

The British Association of Social Workers (BASW) said the government was ignoring the findings of an independent review carried out by David Norgrove in November 2011.

“This is a woolly and weak response from the government, more interested in political grandstanding than in improving family relationships,” said Hilton Dawson, chief executive of BASW. “What was the point of having an independent review from David Norgrove if the government are simply going to dismiss its findings, that the child’s best interests should be at the heart of any court proceedings.

He added: “Legislation already exists to safeguard access rights; it needs to be correctly applied.”

Norgrove’s review found that it would be too onerous for judges to ensure greater equality of access and wrote in an article that while it “was clearly right to try to keep families safely together. We must also be quicker to recognise when this is not possible.”

But a ministerial working group is to decide how to amend the Children Act 1989 to include a “presumption of shared parenting”. They will also consider proposals that will see greater influence from grandparents.

The justice secretary, Ken Clarke, told BBC Radio Four’s Today programme that many people believed the courts often failed to ensure the rights of parents when one parent was denied access to their children by the other.

“We’re stating what I think is the view of most people, that both parents have rights and responsibilities towards their children, and the children are entitled to try to maintain contact with both parents if it’s at all possible,” he told the radio programme.

“But what we’re doing is going to state that principle in the law, because there are far too many people who still think it’s not being applied, though I think the courts do apply it, and try to apply it, in most cases.”

Clarke said flexibility would still exist in the time limits on adoption cases to give more time for more complex cases where this would be in the child’s interest.