Government considers pregnancy reduction scheme to cut children in care

Wednesday 10 June 2020

A local version of a UK scheme that sees mothers who have repeatedly had children taken into care offered support in return for taking contraception is being considered by Government, Express has learned.

It follows calls from the Royal Court, which urged the Children’s Minister to “seriously consider or reconsider” introducing the ‘Pause Programme’ locally after a hearing resulting in a child being freed for adoption.

The child’s parents had other children who had been removed from their care, and freed for adoption. The mother was in fact pregnant with the child during court proceedings.

The Children's Service, which had been assisting the parents prior to the child's birth, told the court it had concerns about “their lack of maturity, inability to focus and prioritise their child’s needs after birth”.

During the proceedings, both Advocates Rui Tremoceiro and Matthew Godden, who represented the mother and father respectively, urged the Court to consider the Pause Programme, which is currently unavailable in the island.

Pictured: The Pause programme was mentioned during recent care proceedings.

It works with women who have experienced or are at risk of repeated pregnancies resulting in children being removed from their care within care proceedings, and aims to break this recurring cycle by providing them with an opportunity to access support.

Since its launch in 2013, it has reached nearly 1,500 women who have had over 4,500 children removed from their care.

The programme can also result in a significant cost saving for local authorities due to fewer children being taken into care, as well as additional savings from lower rates of substance abuse and domestic violence.

The idea was supported by the Royal Court - presided over by Deputy Bailiff Robert Macrae - which described it as "a programme from which the mother in this case would derive substantial benefit.”

Video: An animation explaining the work of the Pause programme.

The Court subsequently urged the Minister to “seriously consider or reconsider, if already considered” the benefits of Pause being introduced in Jersey, if resources permit it.

However, the Pause Programme is not without controversy.

At the end of the initial 16-week “engagement phase” women are asked to use long-acting reversible contraception, as the programme is said to be most effective “when the woman has no children in her care and she is in a position, sometimes for the first time, to focus on herself and her own needs."

“Pause Practices work closely with their local sexual health providers to ensure that the women make an informed choice around contraception and that they are able to choose the most appropriate form for them,” the programme's site notes.

Some have called this focus on contraception unethical, suggesting it is controlling women’s reproductive rights. 

Asked by Express whether the Government would be implementing the recommendation of the Royal Court, a spokesperson said that there were no plans to bring the Pause Programme itself to Jersey.

However, the spokesperson added that a programme aiming to achieve the same goal as Pause could be launched in the island.

“...A locally-developed approach, aimed at reducing pregnancies which result in children being serially taken into care, is at the early stages of consideration,” the spokesperson said.