Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what his policy is on the involvement of the Children and Family Care Advisory and Support Service in cases where there is a previous conviction of domestic violence.

The welfare of the child is paramount in all court desicions about a child's upbringing.

The Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass) has a statutory duty to safeguard and promote the welfare of children involved in proceedings and undertakes safeguarding checks in every case where a parent seeks the child arrangements order to live with or spend time with a child. These checks include enquiries to local authority and police. Convictions or cautions that may be relevant to a risk of harm or further harm to the child are reported by Cafcass to the court prior to the first hearing to support safe decision-making. Cafcass also has a freestanding statutory duty to report to the court on any risks identified at any other stage during proceedings.

Cafcass has developed Domestic Abuse Practice Pathway and recently launched Child Impact Assesment Framework to provide its practitioners with additional tools to assess the impact of domestic abuse and inform its recommendations to the court about child arrangements.