The Different Types of Court Orders

The Court has a number of ways of becoming involved if there is a dispute over the upbringing of a child. A summary of the most common Court Orders are below.

Section 8 Orders

The most common range of Court Orders used by the Court for this purpose are called "Section 8 Orders" as the powers are listed in Section 8 of the Children Act 1989.

A Section 8 Order cannot be made for a person over 18 years old. For an order to be made in respect of a 16 or 17 year old, there have to be "exceptional circumstances". The case of Re M (A Minor) (Immigration: Residence Order) [1993] 2 FLR 858 established that the fact that a child didn't have any relatives living in the UK was exceptional circumstances and could justify an order being made to last until the child was 18 years old.

Residence Orders

A residence order settles the arrangements regarding who a child is going to live with. This type of order can be made in favour of anyone, including grandparents, aunts and godparents. It is however most commonly made in favour of one of the child's parents.

"I have had my son every Thurs (until 8pm as his mum works) then Fri after school until Sunday at 6pm. We have done this for 4years non stop, but now my ex has decided she now wants him back every other sat night... now just because she now wants to take my son to her boyfriend's mums house on a Sunday... I need some help/advice please."

"Shared residence orders" are becoming increasingly common. These state that a child will live a certain amount of time with one person, and the rest of their time with another. The order will usually split the time at least 70/30. If the split is more unequal than this, the Court will often consider that a residence and contact order are more appropriate to achieve the desired effect.

Contact Order

A contact order determines who the child should keep in touch with in order to maintain a relationship with other family members. Contact may be in person or indirect such as via letter / email.

"My marriage has ended as my wife has a new partner. We have a 5 year old daughter. My fear now is when she will introduce him to my daughter... I have now found out that he was arrested last year for hitting his now ex-wife... I don't want him to have anything to do with my daughter. Is there anything I can do?"

On occasion a "no contact order" will be made to prevent a residential parent allowing a "risky" contact (such as a convicted paedophile or violent offender) to have contact with the child. However prohibited steps orders are often more appropriate for this purpose.

Specific issue Order

This order determines a specific question regarding a child's upbringing. This can be anything from what school a child should attend to whether a child should have particular medical treatment.

Prohibited Steps Order

This order states that a specified action in relation to the upbringing of a child should not happen without the express consent of the Court. The order is entirely negative, telling a parent or carer what they may not do in respect of their child.

"I have a baby with this lady... I have a problem since we separated a year ago and she got a new man in her life. 3 months later they got traditionally married... now she tells me that she's going to change her surname and also is my child to that man's surname. I really need help on this one..."

This order is commonly used to prevent a parent changing a child's surname, along with other issues such as removing them from the UK.

Local Authority Intervention

If a Local Authority intervenes in a family's life out of concerns for a child's welfare, there are three main orders that they will apply for.

Emergency Protection Order

This order is used to remove a child from a situation where they are suffering significant harm and there is not time to wait for the Local Authority to decide the long-term future of the child. The child is removed immediately without prior notice being given to the parents or child. This order is therefore only used in a genuine emergency in order to provide a child with immediate short-term protection.

Supervision Order

This order gives the Local Authority an obligation to supervise the care given to a child. The order does not allow the Local Authority to remove the child from their parents. This type of order works best with the co-operation of parents, and can be effectively used to support parents to care for children. This order is particularly common if a child is injured through an act of a parent that was thought to be out of character for the adult.

Care Order

A care order gives the Local Authority parental responsibility and so authorises them to make decisions about the child's upbringing, including where the child will live. The child is commonly placed in a care home, a Local Authority residence. However the Local Authority does not have to remove the child from their parents if a care order is in place.

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