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If you are told that there will be an urgent care hearing about your child, this guide for parents explains what happens next and how Fosters Solicitors can help you at very short notice. Urgent care proceedings, such as Emergency Protection Orders or Interim Care Orders, can feel overwhelming, but our Family & Children team is experienced in acting swiftly, explaining your options in clear language and supporting you through each step of the process.
Interim Care Orders and Emergency Protection Orders are urgent court orders that allow a local authority to take protective steps for a child when there are serious safeguarding concerns and there is no time for a planned hearing. Both types of order sit within the wider framework of urgent care proceedings and are designed to secure a child’s safety while the court gathers more information.
An Interim Care Order is a temporary order that allows the local authority to share or assume parental responsibility while concerns about a child are investigated during ongoing care proceedings. It does not decide where a child will live in the long term but gives the local authority short term legal authority while the court considers whether the threshold of significant harm is met and what interim arrangements are necessary and proportionate.
An Emergency Protection Order is a more urgent, short-term order that permits the local authority to take immediate protective action where there is an imminent risk of significant harm and no safer alternative at that moment. These urgent care proceedings often involve very limited notice to parents, and the court will look closely at whether there is truly an emergency, what evidence is available and whether any less intrusive measures could keep the child safe.
Parents are often surprised to receive only hours or even minutes of notice of an emergency hearing, but the law permits urgent applications where there is an immediate risk to a child’s safety or welfare. In urgent care proceedings, the local authority may present new safeguarding information from the police, health services or schools, or evidence that an existing safety plan has broken down, and the court will list a hearing at the earliest available time, including out of normal court hours if needed.
Common reasons for such short notice include new allegations of serious harm, sudden concerns about non accidental injury, a crisis in voluntary arrangements or situations where a baby has just been born and the local authority issues care proceedings immediately. Although the process feels fast, the Family Court still focuses on fairness, and you are entitled to be heard, to seek representation and to challenge whether the order sought in the urgent care proceedings is necessary and proportionate.
Urgent care proceedings often follow a sudden event, such as a child being taken to hospital with an injury that raises safeguarding concerns. For example, a child may attend an emergency department with a head injury, and the medical team may worry that the injury could be non-accidental, prompting a referral to Children’s Services and an urgent application to the Family Court for an Emergency Protection Order or Interim Care Order.
In a recent case, a parent brought their child to hospital with an injury and the medical staff did not accept the parent’s explanation, leading to Children’s Services seeking an urgent hearing listed at short notice. The parent contacted Fosters Solicitors promptly, and our Family & Children team obtained the local authority papers, discussed the concerns with the parent and represented them in court. We applied for an independent medical expert who helped show that the parent’s explanation could be a reasonable account of how the injury occurred, demonstrating how early specialist input in urgent care proceedings can make a real difference to the outcome.
If you are told about an urgent Emergency Protection Order or Interim Care Order hearing, it is important to seek specialist advice on urgent care proceedings straight away. Parents and people with parental responsibility involved in care proceedings are entitled to non means tested legal aid, which means you can access expert legal representation regardless of your financial circumstances.
When you contact Fosters Solicitors our Family Law Solicitors will:
If you only receive minutes of notice and have not been able to speak to a solicitor before the hearing, still join the court hearing, whether it is in person, by telephone or by video. You can tell the judge that you wish to be represented and that you have contacted, or are trying to contact, a solicitor, and the court can allow short time during the urgent care proceedings for you to take advice or list a follow up hearing quickly so that your position is fully considered.
Sometimes, instead of immediately pursuing Emergency Protection Orders or Interim Care Orders, the local authority may ask you to agree to a Section 20 arrangement. A Section 20 agreement under the Children Act 1989 is a voluntary arrangement where parents or guardians consent to their child being accommodated by the local authority, often in foster care, without the court making an order, and it can sometimes be put forward as an alternative to urgent care proceedings.
Section 20 can give families breathing space while assessments take place, but parents should not feel pressured into signing without legal advice, because these agreements can have significant implications for both you and your child. Before agreeing to Section 20 in the context of urgent care proceedings, it is sensible to speak to a specialist solicitor at Fosters Solicitors, who can discuss whether the proposal is genuinely voluntary, how long the arrangement might last and what other options, including support at home or more limited arrangements, might be available.
Urgent care proceedings sit within a wider legal framework for child protection in England and Wales. The Children Act 1989 is the cornerstone of this framework and sets out the paramountcy principle, meaning the child’s welfare is the court’s first consideration, as well as giving local authorities powers to intervene, seek Emergency Protection Orders, bring care proceedings and accommodate children when necessary.
The Children Act 2004 and statutory guidance, such as Working Together to Safeguard Children, reinforces multi agency cooperation – defining how social workers, schools, police and health professionals should work together when there are concerns about neglect or abuse. Within this framework, Section 20 of the Children Act 1989 allows local authorities to provide accommodation for children in need who cannot live with their families, either because there is no one with parental responsibility available or because remaining at home would place the child at risk, and there is no strict time limit in the statute on how long a child can be accommodated in this way.
When concerns cannot be safely managed through voluntary support or Section 20 alone, the local authority may apply for Emergency Protection Orders to secure immediate safety or issue full care proceedings seeking care orders that grant them parental responsibility. Throughout these urgent care proceedings parents are automatically eligible for legal aid, which helps safeguard access to legal representation and reinforces the fairness of the process while the court decides whether the threshold of significant harm or likelihood of harm is met.
For further background on the statutory guidance that underpins safeguarding decisions, you can read the government’s Working Together to Safeguard Children guidance on the GOV.UK website, which explains how agencies should share information and respond when children may be at risk.
Being told that there is an urgent hearing concerning your child is understandably stressful, but taking calm, practical steps can help you feel more in control of the urgent care proceedings. The key priorities are understanding what is being alleged, making sure your voice is heard at court and getting support from a specialist family law team.
Swift action by the court does not mean that final decisions have been made or that you will not have more chances to explain your situation. With prompt legal advice and constructive engagement, urgent care proceedings can lead to solutions that focus on your child’s welfare, consider safer alternatives to removal and give the court a fuller picture of your family circumstances before any longer-term orders are considered.
Fosters has a dedicated team of Family & Children solicitors with extensive experience in all aspects of urgent care proceedings, including Emergency Protection Orders, Interim Care Orders and Section 20 arrangements. The team understands that needing a family lawyer in these circumstances is often one of the most important legal steps a person will ever take, and places a strong emphasis on clear communication, empathy and practical support.
Our Family and Children specialists can:
If you have been contacted about an urgent care hearing or want to speak to someone about child protection concerns, you can reach our experienced Family & Children team via our Family Law page or through our contact page, where you can find phone, email and online enquiry options. Our team will listen carefully, explain your options and give you clear, practical guidance about the next steps in your urgent care proceedings.
Urgent care proceedings in family law are cases where the local authority asks the Family Court to make fast decisions about a child’s safety, often through an Emergency Protection Order or Interim Care Order. These proceedings are used when there is evidence of significant harm or an immediate risk of such harm and the court needs to act quickly to protect the child.
An Interim Care Order is a temporary order made during care proceedings that gives the Local Authority parental responsibility, either shared with or overriding the parents, while assessments take place. It does not settle the long-term arrangements for the child but allows the local authority to make decisions about the child’s care and living arrangements while the court gathers more information.
An Emergency Protection Order is a short-term order that enables the Local Authority to take immediate steps to protect a child who is considered to be at imminent risk of significant harm. It can allow the local authority to remove a child to safe accommodation or prevent their removal from a safe place and is often made at very short notice as part of urgent care proceedings.
A Section 20 agreement is a voluntary arrangement under the Children Act 1989 where parents or guardians agree that the local authority will provide accommodation for their child. It does not involve the court but can be linked to urgent care proceedings, and parents should seek legal advice before signing because it can affect where the child lives and how long they stay in local authority accommodation.
Parents and people with parental responsibility involved in care proceedings, including urgent care proceedings such as applications for Emergency Protection Orders and Interim Care Orders, are automatically eligible for legal aid. This means you can receive advice and representation from specialist Family Law Solicitors without needing to pass a means test.
If you only have minutes’ notice of an urgent hearing, you should still attend or join the hearing and tell the judge that you want legal representation and need time to speak to a solicitor. You should contact Fosters Solicitors as soon as possible so that we can obtain the court papers, take your instructions and help present your position to the court.
Yes, urgent care proceedings can involve newborn babies, particularly where the local authority has serious concerns about risk of significant harm and issues care proceedings shortly after birth. In these cases, hearings can be listed very quickly, so early advice from Family Law Solicitors is important to understand your rights and options.
A Section 20 arrangement is a voluntary agreement where parents consent to the local authority accommodating their child without a court order, while an Interim Care Order is made by the court and gives the local authority parental responsibility. In urgent care proceedings, local authorities might suggest Section 20 as an alternative to seeking an Interim Care Order, but parents should always obtain legal advice before agreeing.
Fosters Solicitors can help with urgent care proceedings by providing rapid advice, securing legal aid, obtaining and reviewing court papers, and representing you at emergency hearings. Our Family & Children team will also work with you after the first hearing to prepare for further court dates, liaise with Children’s Services and explore options that support your child’s welfare.
If Children’s Services contact you about serious safeguarding concerns, you can take practical steps such as asking for copies of any letters or documents, noting key dates and the names of professionals involved and contacting Fosters Solicitors’ Family & Children team promptly. Doing this at an early stage helps you understand the nature of the concerns, prepare for any urgent care proceedings and respond in an informed and constructive way.
Urgent care proceedings are court processes where decisions about a child’s safety and living arrangements are made quickly because there is an immediate concern about significant harm.
This article was produced on the 19th December 2025 for information purposes only and should not be construed or relied upon as specific legal advice.
