Re T (a child) (Placement order: Order made against wishes of immediate family)

The mother was born in 1989. She was on the child protection register for a period of time. The mother experienced difficulties which resulted in her being referred to a team for psychiatric assessment. While still young, she was diagnosed as suffering an unstable personality disorder. There were concerns regarding her use of drugs and alcohol.

While pregnant, there were concerns regarding her failure to engage in anti-natal services. When A was born in January 2010, she was taken from the mother and placed in the care of the maternal grandmother. The local authority wanted to secure a placement order within the extended family. The mother and grandmother both opposed that proposal. That opposition would have resulted in a failure of the proposal before the judge, so the matter was stood over and an arrangement reached between the parties that a proportion of the evidence adduced before the judge would be transcribed and laid before the next judge as an accepted record of their contributions.

Following the next hearing, the judge delivered a written preliminary judgment followed by a fuller judgment a few days later.