“Unfortunately, I believe that at week 96 of care proceedings, there is no further support available to teach mother the required skills. There remain concerns around a history of domestic abuse / unhealthy relationships, poor decision making resulting in neglect, poor support network (with a falling out between mother and the lady to whom was previously her main support person, with a repeat reliance on Joe’s father for emotional support), difficulties attuning to Joe and meeting his needs consistently, vulnerabilities around a consistent routine, boundaries, guidance and mood instability / unpredictability. The cause of mother’s behaviour cannot be determined, and there is likely a combination of factors such as trauma, neurodiverse difficulties and / or personality traits, however, most significantly, Joe would be at risk of harm in his mother’s care, and testing out further support, will necessitate continuing delay. I cannot support any further delay for Joe aged [a number]-months-old, with proceedings standing at week 96.”
“The evidence in the life of this case would suggest that when this is the case mother can become angry, frustrated and behave in a manner that would be harmful and frightening to Joe. Additionally, her negative responses to professionals role models negative behaviours as acceptable to Joe. Continued exposure to these issues is likely to cause emotional and mental health problems for Joe as he develops and could lead to poor identity or behavioural difficulties.”
‘A local authority must apply to the court for a placement order in respect of a child’ if it is ‘satisfied that the child ought to be placed for adoption’