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England's judiciary issues guidance limiting urgent court hearings for newborns

BBC News reports that new guidance from England's judiciary will reduce how often mothers must attend urgent family court hearings soon after childbirth.

Published Nov 5, 2026 · 15:14 UTC1 reports

The short version

  • New guidance issued to judges in England will reduce how often mothers attend family court within days of giving birth.[BBC News]
  • Same-day hearings will be granted only if a child's immediate safety is at risk, under the guidance.[BBC News]
  • BBC News reports that more than half of England's urgent care hearings in 2024-25 involved newborns.[BBC News]

Key facts

  • New guidance issued to judges will reduce the number of mothers going to court for child care proceedings within hours or days of giving birth.[BBC News]
  • Under the guidance, same-day hearings should only be granted if a child's immediate safety is at risk.[BBC News]
  • More than half of urgent care hearings in England in 2024-25 were for newborns.[BBC News]
  • Nuffield Family Justice Observatory research found that over 70% of care proceedings involving babies in England were emergency hearings within two days of an application being made.[BBC News]
  • Emma Smale said the share of newborn babies in care proceedings in England and Wales subject to same-day hearings doubled over a decade, from one in 10 in 2012-13 to one in five in 2022-23.[BBC News]

What remains uncertain

  • The reporting does not say how much the guidance will reduce the number of newborn-related urgent hearings.[BBC News]
  • Newborn hearing statistics are attributed to Nuffield Family Justice Observatory research and to Emma Smale's comments, and are not independently verified here.[BBC News]

Sources

Outlet counts describe coverage, not independent confirmation. Reports may share a wire service or original source.