The Children's Hearings System Secondary Teaching Pack

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INFORMATION SHEET 7: PEOPLE WHO ATTEND THE CHILDREN'S HEARING

The key people at the Children's Hearing are:

the child/young person and his/her family or carers
the Children's Reporter
the three panel members (one must be male and one female)
a social worker.

Other people may also attend the Hearing:

the child/young person and his/her family may bring a representative to help them take part in the Hearing. This may be a friend or relative or a solicitor.
other professionals who have some expertise that might be useful to the Hearing, such as a teacher, an educational psychologist or a health visitor may be there.
if the panel has appointed a Safeguarder or a Legal Representative for the child or young person he/she will also attend.

INFORMATION SHEET 7A: PEOPLE WHO ATTEND THE CHILDREN'S HEARING

The key people at the Children's Hearing are:

The child/young person and their family or carers

They will talk with the panel and answer questions. Sometimes there will be other people at the Hearing to help the child/young person. They can take a representative - someone to support them in the Hearing. This might be a friend or relative or their solicitor.

The Children's Reporter

He/she invites all the people to the Hearing and makes sure that they have copies of the reports. He/she will keep a note of what happens at the Hearing and will send it to the child and their family after the Hearing. He/she can give advice to the panel members if they ask for it, for example on what options are available.

The three panel members

They will ask questions, listen to what is said and make a decision about what should happen next.

A social worker

The social worker will tell the panel members what he/she knows about the child's situation and suggest what could be done to make it better.

If the panel has asked a Safeguarder to write a report for them, the Safeguarder will also be there.

A Legal Representative is sometimes asked by a Hearing to help the child/young person to take part in the Hearing.

Word check

Safeguarder = an independent person asked by the panel to look after the child/young person's interests
Legal Representative = a solicitor/lawyer who speaks for the child or young person

INFORMATION SHEET 8: WHAT HAPPENS AT A CHILDREN'S HEARING

Purpose

The purpose of a Children's Hearing is to decide whether compulsory supervision is needed for the child/young person.

Before the Hearing

The Children's Reporter asks for reports for the panel members about the child/young person and their situation. These are usually provided by a social worker, a teacher and, if the child is very young, a health visitor.

A few days before the Hearing the panel members, the family and usually the child, if he/she is over 12, will receive copies of these reports.

Consider

Why should a child over 12 see a copy of any reports written about them?

Can you think of any circumstances when this might not be a good idea?

In the Hearing

The style and setting of the Hearing is very different from courtrooms in Scotland. The setting is not too formal, and usually everyone sits around the same table. The Hearing takes place in private and usually lasts between 45 minutes and an hour.

The panel members will ask the child/young person and their family about the situation and the issues, and what their views are about what is going on. They will also ask the professionals who have written the reports what they think. The panel members will make their decision in front of everyone and give the reasons why they reached that decision.

Throughout the Hearing, the Children's Reporter will have kept a record of who was present. He/she can give advice to the panel members if they ask for it, for example on a procedure or the range of options available. The Reporter cannot try to influence the panel members' decisions.

Consider

Why is it good that everyone gets together and discusses the case before the panel members make a decision?

What are the advantages and disadvantages to the panel members of having to reach their decision in front of everyone at the Hearing?

After the Hearing

Once the child/young person and his/her family have left the room, the panel members will write down the Hearing's decision and the reasons for the decision. The Children's Reporter will arrange for a copy of these to be sent to the child/young person and his/her family.

Consider

Why should the child/young person and his/her family be sent a copy of the decision and reasons after the Hearing?

INFORMATION SHEET 8A: WHAT HAPPENS AT A CHILDREN'S HEARING

Panel Member diagram

There are usually toys for young children to play with while the Hearing is taking place. The panel members will be told about all of the things going on in the child/young person's life. They will talk to the child and the family and ask questions to find out more information.

The child/young person's views are very important and the panel members will ask for his/her opinion. They will ask the social worker and the teacher what they think. The panel members will then make their decision in front of everyone and give the reasons why they have reached that decision.

Throughout the Hearing, the Children's Reporter keeps a record of who was present. He/she can give advice to the panel members if they ask for it, for example on a procedure or the range of options available. The Reporter does not tell the panel members what decision they should make.

INFORMATION SHEET 9: DECISIONS THAT THE HEARING CAN MAKE

The Hearing has several decisions to choose from. The main ones are:

to discharge the referral because the panel members feel that compulsory supervision is not needed
to impose a Supervision Requirement on a child/young person, with any conditions that the panel members think are necessary
if the grounds for referral are not accepted, or the child cannot understand due to their age or ability, the panel members will send the case to the Sheriff Court for the Sheriff to decide if the reasons for the Hearing are correct
to hold the Hearing at a later date if the Hearing is unable to make a decision. This might be because someone did not turn up or because the Hearing needs more information to make an informed decision. This is called continuing the hearing.

Any decision that a Hearing takes is legally binding on the child/young person.

What is a Supervision Requirement?

The most common outcome of a Hearing is a Supervision Requirement. This is a plan of work, support and services to help the child/young person. What is in the plan depends on the reasons why the child/young person is at the Hearing and on his/her circumstances. Each plan is designed to meet each individual's needs.

The Supervision Requirement might include conditions about:

where the child/young person is to live
who he/she may or may not have contact with, and when
attendance at a programme which focuses on his/her behaviour and works to improve it.

Most children on Supervision Requirements stay at home.

The Supervision Requirement will last as long as it is needed but it must be reviewed within a year at another Children's Hearing.

If the child/young person and/or his/her family do not agree with the decision of the Children's Hearing, they can appeal to the Sheriff Court.

INFORMATION SHEET 9A: DECISIONS THAT THE HEARING CAN MAKE

The Hearing has several decisions it can choose from. The main ones are:

to discharge the referral because the panel members feel that compulsory supervision is not needed
to put in place a Supervision Requirement on a child/young person with any conditions that the panel members think are needed
if the child/young person or their family does not agree with the reasons for the Children's Hearing, or if the child cannot understand the reasons for the Hearing, the panel members will ask the Sheriff Court to decide whether the reasons are correct
to hold the Hearing at a later date to get more information to help the panel members to make a decision (this is called 'continuing the Hearing').

The most common decision of a Children's Hearing is a Supervision Requirement.

This means that the child/young person will have to co-operate with people whose job it is to help them and their family with their problems.

The Supervision Requirement might have some special rules in it about where the child/young person must live or who they can see. Most children on a Supervision Requirement stay at home. The Supervision Requirement will last for as long as it is needed but it must be looked at again within a year.

Word check

co-operate = to work together
outcome = what happens as a result of the Hearing
Supervision Requirement = a plan of work and support to help the child/young person

ACTIVITY 4: PANEL MEMBER QUESTIONS

The three panel members receive copies of the reports for the Children's Hearing a few days before it takes place.

As part of their preparation for the Hearing they will think about what questions they would like to ask the child/young person, his/her family and the professionals (the social worker, teacher, health visitor, etc).

1. Look at the case study that you have been given.

2. What are the issues that you as a panel member would like to discuss?

3. Write down one or two questions that you would like to ask each person at the Hearing.

ACTIVITY 4: PANEL MEMBER QUESTIONS - SCENARIO 1

Rhys is nine years old and his sister Amy is six. They live with their mum and dad. The police and social work department referred them to the Reporter. Their parents have a long history of drug addiction. It seems that for much of the time the children are left to look after themselves, and Rhys sometimes looks after his parents.

There are no other family members in the local area and the social worker is concerned about the condition of the house and the children's welfare. He thinks they would do well in foster care. The Head Teacher of the primary school, in her report, says that Rhys and Amy attend school every day but are often tired and hungry.

The social worker asked that the children be excused from attending the Hearing as there are some difficult issues to discuss which they might find upsetting.

Who do you expect to be at the Hearing?

What are the issues that need to be considered?

Write down one or two questions to ask each person at the Hearing.

ACTIVITY 4: PANEL MEMBER QUESTIONS - SCENARIO 2

JOHN

John is 12 years old and lives with his mum and his younger brother Andrew, who is 10. His father left the family home a year ago and lives 100 miles away, so John rarely sees him. Six months ago the Children's Reporter asked the social work department to work with the family after John had been caught shoplifting. He has been arrested again for shoplifting so the Reporter has decided to arrange a Hearing.

In her report, the social worker says that John's behaviour at home is very difficult. He swears and shouts at his mum and will not obey her rules. He comes home late most nights and will not say where he has been, who he has been with or what he has been doing. Recently, he did not return home until the early hours of the morning.

She is concerned at the effect this is having on Andrew, who shares a bedroom with John.

John says that he did steal the things but does not think that it is wrong because "everybody does it".

In his report John's guidance teacher says that John started S1 very well, but that this term his behaviour has deteriorated. He is very rude to some of his teachers and is not handing in his homework on time. He is spending time in the Support Base during French and Maths as he has had to be removed from the class so many times. Because of his bad behaviour he has been excluded for two days. In the last month he has been disappearing from school, sometimes after registration and on other days at lunch time. Neither the school nor his mum know where he his, but they think that he is with older boys.

Who do you expect to be at the Hearing?

What are the issues that need to be considered?

Write down one or two questions to ask each person at the Hearing.

ACTIVITY 4: PANEL MEMBER QUESTIONS - SCENARIO 3

KIRSTY

Kirsty is 15 years old. The Children's Reporter has arranged a Hearing because she has been absent from school for a large number of days this term without a good reason.

The social work report tells you that Kirsty lives with her mum and dad and her granny. She has no brothers or sisters. Her dad owns a business and her mum works for him full-time in the office until 5.30pm. They live in a three-bedroom house in an estate just outside of the town.

Since her granny came to stay after her grand-dad died, things have been difficult in the house. Her mum and her granny don't get on. Kirsty had her appendix out three months ago and had a month off school because of this. Since then her granny has encouraged her to stay off school or leave early if she feels too tired, and to invite her friends who might also not be at school to come around to keep her company. The social worker thinks that Kirsty's granny is lonely and it suits her to have Kirsty and her friends at home. Kirsty's mum and dad are angry about this as they had no idea what was happening until the school informed them. There is a lot of tension at home.

The guidance teacher is concerned that Kirsty is missing a lot of important work and will not do as well as she could in her Standard Grades. There are some folio pieces outstanding for English and Art. Kirsty says that she is not bothered about going to school.

Who do you expect to be at the Hearing?

What are the issues that need to be considered?

Write down one or two questions to ask each person at the Hearing.

CASE STUDY - KIRSTEN ANDERSON

Teachers' sheet

The case study which follows provides pupils with a set of case papers that panel members would receive before the Hearing.

The grounds for referral as prepared by the Reporter are followed by the Social Background Report and school report.

This case study may be used as an extension to Activity 4: Panel Member Questions, where pupils are asked to 'prepare' for a Hearing, highlighting the areas that they wish to discuss with the different people at the Hearing, such as Kirsten, Mr and Mrs Anderson, the social worker and the teacher.

It may also be used as the basis for a mock Hearing.

CASE STUDY - KIRSTEN ANDERSON

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