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Children's Guardian

Children's Guardians represent the rights and interests of a child during cases where social services have become involved (public law proceedings) or in contested adoptions.

In particular they can:

To do their job, Children's Guardians spend time getting to know the children and members of their family.

• More information on care cases and the role of Children's Guardians Opens new window

Children and Family Reporter

Children and Family Reporters help families agree arrangements for their children. They will usually meet with the parents or adults to see if issues can be agreed without going to court (known as mediation).

If no agreement can be reached, the Children and Family Reporter will write a report for the court. This report will explain what enquiries have been made and what they think is best for the children. Generally in these cases, Cafcass officers are the sole representatives of the child's best interests and source of independent advice to the courts.

A mediation service is not available for public law or adoption proceedings.

• More information on how Cafcass works with families Opens new window

Officer in Adoption

The role of the Cafcass Officer in Adoption depends on whether parents agree to the adoption. If the parents agree, then the officer makes sure the parents understand what adoption means for them and for the child, and then writes a short report for the court.

If a parent does not agree, or if there are special circumstances, then a Children's Guardian will do an in-depth investigation and write a report to tell the court whether they think adoption is in the interests of the child.

• Find out more about the role of Cafcass in adoption proceedings Opens new window

Cafcass publications

Cafcass publishes packs to help children and young people understand the court process. These can be downloaded using the links below.

• Cafcass leaflets for adults Opens new window

• Cafcass leaflets for children Opens new window

• Help with PDF files

Useful contacts

• Parents contacts