- News & Comment
-
Online Shop
Online Services
Looseleafs
Law Reports
Books and eBooks
-
CPD & Events
Webinars
Events
- Authors
- About Family Law
- Contact
Women’s Aid said:
“10 years ago this week, Jack (12) and Paul (9), the sons of Claire Throssell MBE, were tragically killed by their father after he deliberately started a fire during unsupervised contact. This contact had been granted by the family courts, despite Claire disclosing her experience of domestic abuse and warning that it was unsafe for the boys to be with their father unsupervised.
The family courts have long presumed that it is in a child’s best interests to have contact with both parents, and this presumption was enshrined in law in 2014. While this presumption does not apply where there is evidence of risk of harm to a child, the strong pro-contact culture often gets hinders the threshold being reached. A report from Women’s Aid in 2016 found that 19 children, including Jack and Paul, were killed because 2005 and 2015 as a result of unsafe child contact."
"Over the last decade, Claire has campaigned tirelessly to protect children and end unsafe child contact with dangerous perpetrators of abuse. In collaboration with Women’s Aid, she launched the Child First campaign, calling on the government to end avoidable child deaths. Claire’s commitment and resolve have resulted in a number of important developments, including the Harm Panel, which was commissioned by The Ministry of Justice to review how family courts identify and respond to allegations of domestic abuse and other forms of serious harm in private legal proceedings. This expert panel found that the presumption of child contact was not fit for purpose, recommending that it be ‘urgently’ reviewed to address its ‘detrimental effects’.
Change to the presumption is sadly yet to be made four years on, and Claire continues to speak up for the lives of children impacted by abuse. A petition launched as part of the Child First campaign recently hit the milestone of 100,000 signatures and will be handed into Downing Street next month. It is essential that the government act now to reform the presumption of child contact and address deeply harmful cultures in the family courts which put young lives at risk.
Women’s Aid is honoured to campaign alongside Claire and stands in solidarity with her as she pushes for life-saving changes. We cannot imagine how difficult this time of year is for Claire and will be keeping Jack and Paul in all our thoughts.”
