The Coronavirus Act 2020 brought in the right for Local Authorities to cease operating to fulfil their normal statutory duties towards disabled people and their carers, known as an ‘easement’ of their Care Act obligations. These changes could have a serious impact on the assessment...
In response to the increased demands and pressures faced by Local Authorities amidst the coronavirus pandemic, the Government has published guidance outlining its advice to Local Authorities regarding Children's Social Care. What does the guidance cover? The guidance is aimed at Local Authorities ("LAs"), those with corporate...
On Tuesday 28 April the High Court will hear the case of a 16 year old child who claims he cannot meet his basic living needs because Bexley Council refuse to also provide support to account for his 19 year old brother. The case will...
On 20 April 2020 the Government published guidance confirming the temporary extension of free school meals eligibility during the Covid-19 crisis to certain families with no recourse to public funds. The guidance can be found here and here. The extension of eligibility was made in response...
In response to MG&Co’s letter threatening judicial review on behalf of six children, the Secretary of State for Education has agreed to extend free school meal entitlement during the current Covid-19 crisis. The original eligibility criteria required parents to be claiming certain welfare benefits. It therefore...
The Education Secretary, Gavin Williamson announced that “no child should go hungry as a result of measures introduced to keep people at home”. To meet that aim the government issued guidance providing that schools should continue to provide meals or vouchers for eligible children whilst...
The Claimant, a vulnerable minor, was excluded from attending the premises of a significant number of local businesses who were members of the area’s Crime Reduction Partnership, the BCRP. The BCRP and Sussex Police had an agreement to share information about suspected offenders pursuant to which...
MG&Co represented a vulnerable and homeless 6 month old baby and his mother in an urgent judicial review challenge to a local authority’s refusal to provide support pending completion of an assessment of the child’s needs under section 17 of the Children Act 1989. The family...
We at Matthew Gold & Company Ltd want to do everything we can to protect the health of the public and our staff, while maintaining services to our clients. For this reason, we have changed our working practices to comply with Government guidelines in light...
At long last, the Historical Institutional Abuse Redress Board has now been introduced to compensate victims who suffered abuse as children whilst in residential institutions from 1922 to 1995 in Northern Ireland. The scheme offers up to £100,000 in compensation provided certain criteria are met with...
The Maughan hearing will be live-streamed from court room 2, you can access the broadcast from here: https://www.supremecourt.uk/live/court-02.html Key information On 26 and 27 February 2020 the Supreme Court will decide what is the standard of proof for finding a short form and narrative conclusion of suicide. The...
Background We recently acted for a vulnerable young adult who had been assessed by his local authority as having adoption support needs and required psycho-therapy as a result. His local authority made an application to the Adoption Support Fund (“ASF”), a scheme run by the Department for...