The cost of covid: family dispute cases rise by nearly a third

Wednesday 28 April 2021

Newly released figures have revealed the strain on family life caused by last year’s lockdown.

Last year, the Jersey Family Court Advisory Service, which looks after the interests of children involved in family court proceedings, saw a 31.5% increase in active cases during 2020 and a 24.1% increase in the overall number of new cases added compared to 2019.

The figures are included in the Jersey Probation and After-Care Service’s annual report, which includes the JFCAS.

The family service worked on a total of 171 cases last year compared to 130 the year before and was left with a caseload of 103 at the end of the year.

Chief Probation Officer Mike Cutland said: “I think it is probable that lockdown contributed to the rise in cases. People were more likely to feel stressed, unhappy and worried about range of issues, including work and money. 

“All of this adds to the cumulative effect making relationships trickier. In addition, some parents chose to reduce or stop contact because of worries that the ex-partner might unwittingly expose their child or children to increased risk of infection. These actions sometimes resulted in the former partner bringing proceedings to the court.”

The Jersey Family Court Advisory Service specifically deals with three areas: private law, which refers to applications, following a divorce or separation, about the arrangements for children; public law, which refers to cases where the Children’s Service, on behalf of the Minister for Children and Housing, make an application for a Court Order, for example a Care Order, to safeguard the welfare of the child; and adoption.

Pictured: The different type of cases that the Family Court Advisory Service dealt with last year.

Private law can include deciding where children will live or how often they will have contact with a parent, and includes applications from a parent who wishes to remove the child or children from Jersey to live in another jurisdiction and the other parent does not consent to this.

The report says: “It is noteworthy to report that 83 of the 113 applications (73%) were made in the second half of 2020. Sadly, this reflect the fact that various issues arose during the first lockdown period which were then referred to Court for adjudication once restrictions began to be lifted.

“Of the 82 new applications 50 of them (61%) had Children Service involvement and/or required expert reports to be commissioned. Thus, we continue to see an increase, 20% higher than last year. This confirms the view that private law applications continue to be complex in nature, often with safeguarding concerns that need to be addressed.”

Mr Cutland said that the Probation and After-Care Service as a whole achieved some “impressive results” despite the difficulties posed by the pandemic. 

“Probation Orders were completed in 83% of cases with this figure rising to 89% in relation to Community Service Orders,” he said. 

“We also slightly exceeded our target for establishing a reduction in risk of re-conviction for clients who had been supervised on Probation Orders. These high completion rates were made possible by staff responding quickly and effectively to the needs of clients whether by providing advice and motivation, tackling problems or encouraging compliance.”

Pictured: Chief Probation Officer Mike Cutland.

He added: “The impact of covid has resulted in clients displaying a range of complex needs including concerns about relationships, emotional difficulties and, in some cases, an increasing use of alcohol and drugs. 

“Throughout the pandemic we have maintained contact with clients either virtually or in person, always looking to embrace new ideas to work effectively. 

“This flexible approach has achieved some positive results in the way we have managed workloads and helped clients to complete orders successfully . We have been encouraged by the positive feedback we have received from clients and partner agencies about the way we perform our work and we intend to build on this.  

“2020 entailed the service having to work in new and innovative ways in order to continue our work with clients, the courts and multi-agency partners. Colleagues in the criminal justice and family court teams have demonstrated a true ‘esprit de corps’ and through their commitment and skill have achieved some excellent results.”