A (Relinquished Baby: Risk of Domestic Abuse)

In a relinquished-baby case, adoption without notifying or assessing the putative father and wider family may be lawful where it is necessary and proportionate to protect the child and others from serious domestic abuse. Each case is fact-sensitive. The court must treat the child’s welfare as paramount, apply the statutory welfare checklist, and conduct a thorough analysis of realistic placement options. The mother’s wish for a confidential adoption arrangement must be critically examined but may receive significant weight. Analysis may, where necessary and proportionate, take place without the knowledge or assessment of third parties. Adoption remains a significant interference with family life and requires a high level of justification.

A local authority sought a declaration that it could arrange the adoption of a seven-month-old baby without notifying or assessing his putative father or extended maternal and paternal family. The mother had relinquished the child and strongly wished for a discreet and rapid adoption. She feared serious abuse and harassment from the putative father, whose history included violence, stalking, harassment, threats and breaches of protective orders.

The court considered whether the available evidence justified proceeding without involving the wider family, including whether any family member could provide safe and secure care and whether disclosure would expose the mother, the child and other children to serious harm.

1. The declaration sought by the local authority was granted. On the evidence, there was no realistic prospect of safe and secure placement with any maternal or paternal family member.
2. The child’s welfare was paramount under section 1(2) of the Adoption and Children Act 2002. The court had regard to the statutory welfare checklist, including the likely lifelong effect of adoption, the child’s need for protection from harm, and the wishes and feelings of relatives.
3. The court applied the principles identified in Re RA (Baby relinquished for adoption) [2016] EWFC 25: each case is fact-sensitive; adoption is a significant interference with family life; and a thorough analysis of realistic options is required. Analysis is distinct from assessment and may be conducted without the knowledge of third parties where that is necessary and proportionate.
4. The mother’s wishes were not decisive, but they required critical examination and carried significant weight. The court also considered the Article 8 rights of the mother, the child and the wider family.
5. The evidence established a real and serious risk of domestic abuse to the child if placed within the family, and to the mother and her other children if the putative father were told of the child’s existence. Disclosure could trigger further abuse, displacement and disruption without securing safety.
6. These factors, considered cumulatively with the mother’s clear wish for adoption, justified withholding information from the putative father and extended family. The court was satisfied that the local authority had established the case for the declaration.