Social work and child-centred family court mediation

In April 2001, the Children and Family Court Advisory Support Service (CAFCASS) became responsible for family court work, including the provision of mediation services. Family court mediation offers a gateway for social work with children and families whose needs are largely left untouched by current services, and could thereby play an important part within the broader extension of prevention, early intervention, parenting and support services recommended by government. Over the past two decades, mediation has become a popular approach to reducing conflict and resolving disputes in a wide range of inter-personal, community and organizational settings. Given the professional interest that social workers have in helping their clients achieve more harmonious lives, the space for mediation would appear considerable and yet the connections between mediation and social work are, as yet, insufficiently mapped and analysed, in terms of both theory and practice. This paper draws on literature and recent research to review the relationship between family court mediation and social work.