27 January 2026
Katie Andrews, Solicitor at AMD Solicitors considers the Governments recent proposals to further protect children from abusive parents.
Under the Children Act 1989, the Courts are required to place an emphasis on the ‘presumption of parental involvement’. This presumption requires that the Court will assume that a parent’s involvement within a child’s life will always further the child’s welfare, unless proven otherwise.
Due to this, the Courts have always placed a heavy weight on children needing a relationship and contact with both of their parents.
Towards the end of 2025, the Government unveiled plans to repeal the ‘presumption of parental involvement’. This presumption led to concerns that always prioritising contact was leaving room for child abuse to continue in some cases.
In the recent review, it was found that in some cases, contact was being ordered even where there had been domestic abuse. Justice Minister, Baroness Levitt KC said in her findings “Being a parent is a privilege not a right: the only right which matters is a child’s right to safety and this government is determined to ensure that that is at the heart of every decision made about each and every child.”
Whilst there are already circumstances where the Court can consider it inappropriate for the child to have a relationship with a parent, this is a high bar and most commonly, the Court will want to see a relationship with both parents when applying the welfare checklist.
Moving forward, the Government are making it clear that the wellbeing and safety of children should be at the forefront of decision making for the Courts. More time will need to be spent considering if contact really is safe for the child and the Court should not order direct unsupervised contact if there are concerns about the child’s safety with that parent.
Where the Court considers a parent to be a threat to the child’s safety, they can restrict that parent’s involvement within the child’s life. They can make Orders for written communication only, supervised contact through a contact centre or in some circumstances, no contact at all.
Whilst the Government have not clarified when this change is likely to come in to place, this is likely to be a welcome change for parents who have concerns about their child’s safety through contact with their other parent.
Once implemented, this change will not affect the need for the Court to consider the circumstances of the child’s life under the welfare checklist such as their emotional needs, wishes and feelings, characteristics etc, all of which will need to be considered alongside the safety of the child.
If you would like to discuss matters regarding your children, one of our dedicated team would be well placed to assist you. Please contact us to discuss your matter further.
