Effective Human Rights Protection for Children in Care. Does the UK Provide Effective Remedies Under the European Convention on Human Rights Against the Non-Implementation of Care Orders?

This article analyses whether the legal system for children in care in the United Kingdom complies with the European Convention on Human Rights in providing effective remedies against the failure of local authorities to implement care orders. The point of departure of this analysis is the division of responsibilities between the local authority and the court under the Children Act 1989. Whilst the court has initial powers to issue a care order on the basis of the local authority care plan, it lacks the competence to supervise the correct implementation of that order. Part 2. of this article provides an overview of the legal system and the corresponding jurisprudence on this issue. It discusses the key case law of the House of Lords as well as subsequent relevant judgments. Part 3. describes the different remedies available in the case of non-implementation of care orders provided for by the Children Act and the Human Rights Act. It also demonstrates the difficulties children and their parents face in choosing the appropriate remedy to challenge the local authority's misconduct. Finally, Part 4. examines the relevant standards for care proceedings under the European Convention on Human Rights by focusing on the procedural guarantees of the right to respect for family life, the right to fair trial, and the right to an effective remedy. By way of conclusion, this article argues that the lack of judicial control over the local authority's conduct shows certain deficiencies when compared to the European human rights standards relevant to the effective protection for children in care.