On p60 of the review into how family courts deal with domestic abuse and risk to victims and children. Absolutely damning and devastating - it feels like all the emails of my inbox combined from the past 5+ years. https://twitter.com/LouHaigh/status/1276069927120703488

Every part of the family justice system is heavily criticised in this report, but even in that context, @MyCafcass is getting an absolute pasting. I was emailed their response this morning - they say they don't agree with all of the criticisms.

Just one eg "The PSU submitted that Cafcass interviews exposed children to the risk of further abuse and invited them to relive previous trauma without specialist support."

Picking out especially awful bits...

"A very strong theme from multiple submissions was that children’s views are frequently disregarded, primarily in cases where children are stating that they do not want to spend time with an abusive parent...

"Previous research studies have found a pattern of ‘selective listening’ where Cafcass and courts react positively when children express a wish to spend time with a parent, but treat those who do not as problematic and obstructive.."

"while ‘alienation’ may have become a common counter-allegation, submissions highlighted the very real dangers of accepting this as the default explanation for children not wanting contact."