Section 20 Accommodation

1. Scope of this Chapter

A child or young person who is looked after under Section 20 of the Children Act 1989 is looked after voluntarily – that is their parents, or the young person themselves if over 16, has agreed to them entering care. This agreement is instead of a court order.

As a child looked after, a child who is voluntarily accommodated receives all the same support and services as any other child looked after. The differences between voluntary accommodation and children looked after under a care order are:

The process for entering care – no court order is required;
The process for leaving care – the end of an episode of care, at the parent's request, is agreed by the DCS, not the courts;
The extent of parental responsibility – parents retain full parental responsibility when a child is accommodated voluntarily.

The implications of these differences for practice with this group of children and young people are set out below.

2. Principles for use of Section 20 Accommodation

Section 20 accommodation can be a positive choice, particularly in the following circumstances:

Family support (e.g. Short Breaks);
Where parents are unable to care for their children and there are no family or friends who can care for the child, for example if the parent is in hospital;
As a short term measure, while care proceedings are brought;
For young people aged 16 or 17 who are homeless;
For unaccompanied asylum seekers with capacity to consent to their own accommodation.

Section 20 accommodation should not be used when the local authority needs to share parental responsibility for the child, in order to protect their safety and welfare.

Voluntary accommodation is based on consent. Consent must be informed and voluntarily given. It can be withdrawn at any time. Section 20 should never be used coercively. For young people over 16, the young person can consent (or not) for themselves;
Parental consent does not override the need to understand the child or young person's wishes and feelings. The involvement of the child or young person in decisions about them and their care plan should reflect their age and understanding;
Voluntary accommodation is a partnership between the parents and Slough Children First, and parents must be involved in all decisions about their child and supported to plan for the child's return home;
Requests for accommodation are an opportunity to provide additional support to keep the child living at home. Our response should be to consider what help they need to continue to care for their child. This might include respite or emergency accommodation and a package of support to stabilise the family;
No child or young person should leave care without an assessment of whether it is safe for them to do so. This means that when consent to accommodate is withdrawn, the need for a care order or other arrangement should be considered urgently;
Where the plan is for a child or young person to remain in the care of Slough Children First for the rest of their childhood, or to live with relatives or friends, a care order or other court order should be sought to provide the child with certainty.

3. Roles and Responsibilities

The social worker:

Explores what support parents would need for the child to remain living at home, or to facilitate a return home;
Finds out whether the parents are willing to make arrangements for the child to live with family or friends (N.B. the child may still need to become looked after – see Friends, Family and Connected Persons Procedure);
Ensures that consent is informed and recorded;
Visits and talks to the child before and throughout their care;
Drafts the Section 20 agreement and explains it to the parents;
Follows the process for a child entering care (see Decision to Look After Procedure);
Ensures the child's placement plan is in accordance with the section 20 agreement (i.e. delegated authority);
Keeps the child's parents informed of any changes to their care, where safe to do so and securing their consent where necessary.

The IRO is responsible for:

Reviewing the child's legal status at every CLA Review to consider whether a legal order is required;
Consulting with the child;
Consulting the parents about the care plan;
Inviting the parents to the CLA Review – as they retain parental responsibility.

4. Beginning a Period of Voluntarily Accommodation

A period of voluntary accommodation can begin when:

A parent, or young person over 16, requests accommodation;
A social worker suggests a period of accommodation to the family as part of a package of care and support;
As a temporary measure prior to care proceedings.

As with all decisions to enter care, the child must be seen, and seen alone, to understand their views, wishes and feelings about entering care. Parental requests or consent for care does not override the need to understand what the child wants.

4.1 Consent

Consent is almost always required in order to accommodate a child under Section 20.

"If conversations about s20 accommodation take place in the right way, parents should feel that they have a painful decision to make, but that the decision is theirs." (ADCS / CAFCASS guidance).

Principles of consent

In order to give consent, parents must:

Have the capacity to make the decision;
Be informed about the consequences of that decision;
Give consent in a fair situation, without undue pressure;
Give consent explicitly;
Consent cannot be given under duress;
Parents must not be threatened with a court order or the removal of the child by police if they do not agree. The social worker should explain if a court application will be made if they refuse, but make clear that the outcome of that application is in the hands of the court;
A police officer must not be present when a parent is asked to consent to voluntarily accommodation;
Particular care must be taken in obtaining consent for voluntary accommodation when the children are already in police protection or in care under an Emergency Care Order. Parents must be provided with clear written information about their rights to not consent, or withdraw consent.

It is the personal responsibility of individual social workers to ensure be satisfied that the person giving consent has the capacity to do so.

Where there is any concern about a parent / carer's capacity, the social worker should ensure they discuss this issue with the Manager;
Every social worker should understand how to make decisions about capacity. Any practitioner who does not feel confident in assessing capacity should raise this with their manager as a training need.

Consent is an ongoing process, not a one-off event, and can be withdrawn at any time. Often, parents are asked to consent to voluntary accommodation in stressful circumstances, for example during a period of family crisis. Consent should be revisited at the first and second CLA Review in the context of achieving stability and permanence for the child.

Process for getting consent

In order to obtain clear consent:

The social worker must first be satisfied that the parent giving consent does not lack the mental capacity to do so. Under the Mental Capacity Act 2005, a person is unable to make a decision if (s)he is unable:
- To understand the information relevant to the decision;
- To retain that information;
- To use or weigh that information as part of the process of making the decision; or
- To communicate his/her decision.
If there is doubt about Capacity, no further attempts to obtain consent should be made at that time, and advice should be sought from a Manager, or through a legal consultation where necessary;
If satisfied that the parent has Capacity, the social worker must be satisfied that the consent is fully informed:
- Does the parent fully understand the consequences of giving such a consent?
- Does the parent fully appreciate the range of choice available and the consequences of refusal as well as giving consent?
- Is the parent in possession of all the facts and issues material to the giving of consent?
If not satisfied that the consent if fully informed, no further attempt should be made to obtain consent on that occasion and advice should be sought from a manager and legal advice sought if thought necessary;
If satisfied that the consent is fully informed, then it is necessary to be satisfied that the giving of such consent and the subsequent removal of the child from the parent is both fair and proportionate:
- What is the current physical and psychological state of the parent?
- If they have a solicitor, have they been encouraged to seek legal advice and/or advice from family or friends?
- Is it necessary for the safety of the child for her to be removed at this time?
- Would it be fairer in this case for this matter to be the subject of a court order rather than an agreement?
Whether a person has capacity can sometimes be difficult to determine:
- Some individuals have a learning disability or mental health problem but can present as being more 'able' than in fact they are;
- Mothers who have just given birth can be particularly vulnerable due to the effects of surgery, painkillers and hormonal changes.

Considerable caution should be used when asking for consent for removal in these circumstances.

Absence of objection is not consent. Consent to a child protection plan or pre-birth assessment that includes a contingency plan for the child to become looked after does not equate to consent for accommodation.

4.2 Recording Parental Consent

Parental consent must be recorded using the standard template for Section 20 agreements. This ensures that the consent is properly recorded and that parents receive simple and straight-forward explanation of what they are agreeing to.

Some parents need additional support to understand their rights and options. Periods of voluntary accommodation often occur at moments of crisis. The stress and urgency of the situation may mean that extra help is required, even if a parent is usually comfortable working in a second language or reading official documents. If the parent requires support in reading, or requires the letter in a different language, the social worker must arrange for this before the parent signs the agreement.

Where the letter has been translated, the parent should sign a hard copy of the foreign language text, adding, in the parent's language, words to the effect that 'I have read this document and I agree to its terms'. Both the English language and foreign language document must be uploaded to the child's file.

The parent should be given time to get advice, either from a legal professional or friends and family about whether they should sign.

The document must be signed by the parent, or in the case of a young person aged 16 or 17, by the young person themselves.

4.3 Young people aged 16 or 17 who are homeless

Young people aged 16 or 17 can be voluntarily accommodated when Slough Children First believes that their welfare will be seriously prejudiced if they are not accommodated.

The young person needs to consent to this arrangement. The same conditions apply. The young person must:

Have the capacity to make the decision;
Be informed about the consequences of that decision;
Give consent in a fair situation, without undue pressure;
Give consent explicitly.

The young person must have the information they need to make an informed decision, including what other options are available to support them if they refuse. This should include being clear about the positives of entering care, and particularly, if they become eligible for care leaver support, but also expectations about their behaviour, for example curfews and responses if they go missing from their placement.

The young person can choose to leave care at any time by withdrawing their consent. A good explanation of what it will be like if they enter care at the beginning reduces the risk of disruption later.

The wishes and views of those with parental responsibility must be considered, but they do not need to consent to this arrangement. The young person should also be asked to consent to information being shared with their parents. Young people should be encouraged to agree to this so that their parents can continue to be involved in their care, now and into adulthood.

See: Supporting Young People aged 16 and 17 who are Homeless or at Risk of Homelessness Procedure.

4.4 Voluntary accommodation without consent

Consent is not an absolute statutory requirement. A child can be accommodated under section 20 if:

The person who has been caring for the child is unable to provide them with suitable accommodation and care (either temporarily or permanently), and the parent is not able to give consent;
The child is unaccompanied or abandoned and is not able to consent for themselves (because they lack capacity). This applies to unaccompanied asylum seeking children who are under 16;
This power must be used with caution, and has been the subject of a number of court judgements highlighting how this can go wrong;
There must be no-one with parental responsibility to care for the child, for instance if the child's only parent is sectioned, or in custody. Attempts must be made to contact and gain the consent of anyone else with parental responsibility who is willing and able to care for the child;
The parent must be kept informed of what has been done, where the child is and their rights to overturn the decision;
The decision to accommodate without consent can be overturned by the parents. Parents who are later willing and able to care for their children must be asked for consent and, if that consent is not forthcoming, the child must be returned to them.

This decision can only be made by the Director of Operations.

This, therefore, supports Slough Children First in its duties towards children on those occasions where 'parental consent' cannot, for a variety of reasons, be obtained at the time of a child's accommodation or parents cannot effect care of the child themselves.

5. The Section 20 Agreement

The Section 20 agreement should set out:

Who has parental responsibility for the child (where more than one parent has PR);
How long the child is intended to stay accommodated;
How and when the child's legal status will be reviewed;
The agreed amount of notice for a parent to withdraw their consent for the child to be accommodated;
Parental consent for the child's carer to make delegated decisions;
Where the child will live;
Known contentious issues in relation to parenting and day-to-day living and consensus about how that should be managed;
Contact details for the parent so that they can be kept informed of the child's living arrangements and asked for consent where required.

The content of the Section 20 agreement forms the basis for the care plan. Nothing in the Section 20 agreement can remove parental rights to withdraw consent at any time.

6. Care Planning for Children Accommodated Voluntarily

A child who is voluntarily accommodated under Section 20 is a child looked after. Children looked after under Section 20 must:

Have an allocated social worker;
Have a care plan, including a PEP and a health plan;
Have an Independent Reviewing Officer;
Have a CLA Review at specified periods;
Receive Statutory visits from their social worker;
Have access to an Independent visitor and advocate should they request one.

Young people who are over 16 who have been in care for more than 13 weeks since they were 14 are 'eligible young people'. If the young person withdraws their consent to be accommodated, after they have become 'eligible', then they become 'relevant young people' and must have a Pathway Plan.

See: Decision to Look After Procedure and Leaving Care and Transition Procedure.

6.1 Care plan

The Care Plan for a child looked after under section 20 must include a timescale for the child returning home or for care proceedings to begin. A voluntary period in care must not be open-ended and should be considered at each CLA review. This does not apply when the young person is 16 or 17 and has agreed to voluntary accommodation themselves.

The child's parents retain parental responsibility and therefore they must consent to the child's care plan. In the case of 16 and 17 year olds, the young person must consent to the Care Plan.

The Care Plan should set out:

What support will be provided to parents to support the child's return home, if that is part of the plan (reunification planning); or
How the child's legal status will be secured if it is intended that they do not return to their parents (parallel planning);
How the relationship between the parent and the child can be repaired, if this was the cause of the voluntary accommodation;
Contact arrangements with the parents – this is not a legal requirement, but helps to provide stability for the child.

See the Decision to Look After Procedure.

6.2 CLA review

The first CLA Review for a child who is voluntarily accommodated must consider:

The level of risk to the child if they were to return home;
Whether a legal order is needed to keep the child safe, or secure permanence;
What support the family needs to support the child's return home;
Revisiting consent and information.

Where a child or young person is living with a family member as a Connected Person Foster Carer under Section 20, the CLA Review must consider whether a legal order, such as a child arrangements order or Special Guardianship Order, would secure permanence for the child.

Issues of permanence, rehabilitation and consent should be considered at every CLA Review.

See: Looked After Reviews Procedure.

6.3 Decision-making and information sharing

Parental responsibility remains with the parents while a child is voluntarily accommodated under Section 20. Where the young person has consented to be accommodated, they should be encouraged to consent to their parents being kept informed of their care.

Parents should be informed of their ongoing responsibilities to make decisions for their child;
The care plan and written agreement with the parents should make the responsibilities of the local authority, and delegated authority to carers, clear;
The parents/carers should be advised of any changes in the child's circumstances whilst the child is in local authority care.

In almost all cases, the parent(s) must be informed of where the child will live. If the social worker, carer or placement provider feels that the parent knowing the child's location puts the child at risk, then it should be considered if a care order would be more appropriate. The exception is where the child is placed with other vulnerable young people and the placement provider asks for the address to be withheld to safeguard those other young people (for example a secure welfare placement).

7. The use of Section 20 prior to Court Proceedings

Legal orders give children and young people the stability of knowing where they will live in the long-term. Legal proceedings also ensure that the court makes important decisions and takes into account the rights of both the child and their family.

In most cases, permanence planning should result in either the child returning to live with their parents or a legal order giving someone else parental responsibility;
Section 20 may, in an appropriate case, have a proper role to play as a short-term measure pending the commencement of care proceedings. The use of Section 20 should not delay the issuing of care proceedings and cases must not be allowed to drift.

Issuing proceedings can have benefits, including the resolution of factual disputes and the use of complex medical evidence, and allowing parents to access legal aid and legal advice. In complex cases, it is better for proceedings to be issued promptly allowing the court to manage the timetable of the case and the parents to be able to access effective legal advice.

Children and young people who are voluntarily accommodated but where there is an intention to issue proceedings must be added to the care proceedings tracker at the point where the recommendation to issue is made. This allows progress on the proceedings to be monitored and to avoid drift.

7.1 The use of Section 20 for newborn babies

Where the plan is for a newborn baby to enter care, a care application should be made within 5 days of birth, rather than rely on a Section 20 agreement.

Section 20 might be appropriate for newborns when:

Where shared care arrangements for the new born have been assessed and agreed by the local authority;
Where the parents have agreed to relinquish the children for adoption but cannot do so for 6 weeks after birth, if Slough Children First is convinced that their intentions are genuine and robust.

7.2 Process for using Section 20 prior to court proceedings

When social workers are working with children who are voluntarily accommodated prior to care proceedings, they must get legal advice from the Legal Planning Surgery before asking parents to sign the agreement.

The Legal Planning Surgery will support the social worker to define the Section 20 agreement, as well as giving advice about preparing for care proceedings.

Section 20 agreements prior to care proceedings should set out:

Actions to be taken to prepare for care proceedings and timescales for completing those actions;
The proposed care plan for the child;
Additional assessments required;
How the decision to accommodate will be kept under review.

When the Legal Gateway/Planning Meetings agrees the use of the Section 20 prior to care proceedings, the child's social worker must add the details of the young person onto the care proceedings tracker. This should include the target date for issuing proceedings. This helps to avoid drift.

A voluntary agreement is based on building trust between the parent and Slough Children First. Completing actions in the plan to prepare for court in a timely matter supports the building of that trust. Any plan agreed with parents, or their legal representative, should be adhered to carefully. Any plan should be based on the child's welfare needs and avoid delay.

8. Ending a Voluntary Accommodation Placement

The parents of a child or young person who is looked after under section 20 can withdraw their consent for the accommodation at any time. This can cause the child or young person uncertainty and instability, and may leave them at risk if the home to which they are returning is not safe.

A good care plan can help to ensure that parents do not request the return of the child unexpectedly. This should include:

Timescales for the child to return home;
Support for the family to prepare for the child returning home;
The requirement for an assessment of need prior to a return home.

When a parent notifies the authority of their intention to remove the child or young person from the care of Slough Children First, this must result in an assessment of need and a clear decision about the safety of the child at home.

If the parent requests immediate return of their child, this must be complied with, even if the assessment or authorisation has not been obtained in time.

The exceptions are:

Where the parent poses an immediate risk of physical harm to the child, any person, including a foster carer, can take steps to protect the child, such as not allowing the child to leave with the parent. This might apply for example if a parent arrives drunk and intends to drive the child home;
If the social worker's belief is that the child is at immediate risk of significant harm due to returning home, they must consider police protection or an Emergency Protection Order to keep the child safe while further assessments are made;
If the young person has turned 16 since entering care and consents to remain accommodated.

8.1 Young people withdrawing consent to accommodation

Where a young person has consented to be accommodated, they can withdraw that consent at any time. If the young person has been in care for more than 13 weeks since their 14th birthday, they are considered 'relevant young people' once they leave care.

The young person's social worker must explain to the young person the consequences of leaving care, both the support that they will receive as a relevant young person and how this is different from the support for other young people. This includes:

A pathway plan, reviewed every 3 months;
An allocated social worker until they are 18, then a personal adviser;
Regular visits to the place where they live, every 6 weeks until they are 18;
Support with accommodation, education and employment from Slough Children First (and ineligibility for separate support with Housing from Slough Borough Council).

The young person should also be made aware of changes to their eligibility for support if they live with their parents for more than 6 months before they turn 18.

8.2 Assessment

Where the plan is for a child to return to the care of their family when they cease to be looked-after, there should be a robust planning and decision-making process to ensure the decision is in the best interests of the child and will safeguard and promote their welfare.

In making the decision to cease looking after a child, the child's social worker must assess:

The suitability of the child's proposed accommodation and maintenance when he/she ceases to be looked-after; and
What services and support the child might need and who they might contact for support;
Where the child is returning home, what services and support the parent might need and who they might contact for support;
The Local Authority must also ascertain the child's wishes and feelings about the proposed plan for their care (having regard to their age and understanding), and consider them;
Consideration must also be given to the wider context of the family and environmental factors.

8.3 Decision making

Where a child has been Looked After for 20 working days or more, the decision to cease looking after the child must be approved by the Chief Executive of Slough Children First. This applies to children returning home and young people aged 16 or 17 moving to independent living.

In making the decision, the Chief Executive of Slough Children First must be satisfied that:

The young person's wishes have been ascertained and considered;
The decision to cease to look after the child will safeguard and promote their welfare;
The support that the child and parent receive via Slough Children First and partner agencies will be effective in supporting the child being safeguarded and promote the child's well being and best interests;
The Independent Reviewing Officer (IRO) has been informed.