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Post by Deleted on Apr 30, 2014 11:11:47 GMT
From West Mercia Police Website
Harbouring notices are official written warnings given to someone by the police on behalf of a parent or carer of a young person, instructing them that they are banning them from seeing that child and that they will be arrested for child abduction if they continue to do so.
Superintendent Amanda Blakeman from the force’s public protection unit said: “Parents and carers of young people often feel powerless to stop a relationship or friendship between their child and an adult, especially if there is no proof that any criminal offences have taken place".
“Harbouring notices put the onus on the behaviour of the adult involved by letting them know that the person with parental responsibility for that child does not want them to see their child. It gives an individual a very strong incentive not to allow or encourage children on their premises, or they will be arrested for child abduction".
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Post by Deleted on May 5, 2014 14:56:01 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Jun 1, 2014 10:07:47 GMT
From the Met Police.
The Metropolitan Police Service can provide assistant and prevention in vulnerable minors going missing. There is a process called an Abduction Warning.
This process is aimed at tackling those incidences where young people under the age of 16 years (under 18 if in local authority care) place themselves at risk of significant harm due to their associations and the forming of inappropriate relationships.
The issuing of this notice can be completed through the MPS, however it can be issued by Social Services. I do not wish to deceive you, this process has many hurdles and as always a process that has to be adhered to, this process can take time to complete. The reason for this is that the effectiveness of this warning is significantly reduced if there are procedural irregularities as this will mean the evidence will not be viable and sound in terms of a potential prosecution.
It is also important to consider that there is no statutory or other legislative provision dealing specifically with the issue of Child Abduction Warning Notices. Breach of a Notice is NOT a criminal offence. These Notices are simply part of an administrative process.
If issued properly, these Notices can provide evidence to support the prosecution of other criminal offences and/or to support civil proceedings such as ASBO’s, evictions or injunctions.
There are two types of Child Abduction Warning Notices - one is for a child under 16, who is not in the care of the local authority. To issue a Warning Notice in these circumstances a complainant statement from one of the parents (whoever has full parental responsibility) is required. There is also a consideration that this process does have a time limit of 6 months is usual. The authority to issue a warning will need to be authorised by my Detective Inspector and I will need to evidence to him that either your DD is reported missing and is found on 2 or more occasions to be in the company of a suspect, or is their behaviour and association with a suspect is giving significant cause for concern.
Any decision to prosecute will be subject to CPS submission, due to the complexities of the legislation.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 8, 2014 7:19:39 GMT
Abduction notices are just that a notice, but it seems the law isn't really on our side as they are not legally binding. Unless your child is actually abducted or held against their will there is nothing us parents can do!
An abduction notice states that you the legal parent are not giving permission for your child to be in the company of said person, that you are saying the said person must not allow your child to enter their premises or place of work or that they must not meet your child alone in a cafe or other public place without your permission.
You issue the notice which then puts the onus on the adult that should your child turn up at their house/place of work to see them the onus is on the adult to let you know that they have arrived so that you can go round and collect them or whatever. If the adult breaks this agreement and you find out, they get a warning from the police, but they cannot be arrested as your child has agreed to see them and has gone there willingly!
The abduction order also has to be re-issued every 6 months and if there are more than one family member, you have to issue each of them a notice each.
In order to issue the notice in the first place you, the legal parent, have to have proof that your child and said adult have actually met on at least two seperate occasions against your wishes, before the police will even issue the notice as they could have bumped into each other in the street/shops by accident, which would not count as it would be a chance meeting.
Just thought I'd share this with you. How the law is an ass and even the police don't really help us adopters to keep our vulnerable children safe.
It is an uphill struggle, but we keep on going regardless and hope and pray that an official letter/notice from the police will be enough to get BF to back off and agree to supervised direct contact instead of doing what they want and disrupting our children's lives causing hurt and chaos all round.
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Post by pingu on Jun 8, 2014 11:23:01 GMT
I find this strange, as i have always understood that until the child is 16 you are in charge. I know people who have said to their child, if you don't come home i am calling the police. You have made me curious now, i am going to ask a policeman when i get a chance.
My eldest, went to see birth family members at 15, arranged with us. Someone reported him as with birth family, and police checked with us that he had permission to be there. If he hadn't, they would have brought him home. I would be complaining to police complaints board or whoever it is nowadays, if they didnt bring an under 16 yr old home, if said child was refusing to come himself, as you are the parent.
We are in Scotland, and Scots Law can be different, or maybe the police here take a different approach (they certainly sent the BNP away with a flea in their ear when they tried to stir up racial tension a few years back) but it does seem puzzling that such things as Harbouring notices should even be needed for under 16 .
Anyway, the incident with our child took place in England, so the police in that part of the country certainly didnt take the view that they could leave an under 16 somewhere his parents hadnt given permission for him to be.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 8, 2014 11:31:37 GMT
Pingu all this information has been given to me by the Metropolitan Police (in England) during a two hour meeting last week.
Laws may be different in Scotland, but that is how it stands here in England which is why I am posting about it so that others are aware of how little there is to help us, even from the police.
Also I think you have misunderstood my post.
The police would of course bring an under 16 child home from their BF's flat or whatever, if they found the child there against your wishes, but of course this is the problem isn't it, they have to actually find the child there in the first place and that's the problem if you child is going there willingly to see them and you aren't aware at the time.
Hence the abduction notice, so that if you child goes missing and you inform the police, the first place they will look is the BF's addresses, but by then your child will probably have scarpered or will pretend they have been elsewhere in order to protect the BF, that's the problem.
Unless the BF co-operate, there is little us adopters can do and therein lies the problem - It's a joke!!
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Post by peartree on Jun 8, 2014 17:16:05 GMT
Found abduction notices very helpful indeed
They carry a much higher tarif
And really do put off the groups of paedophiles who prey on young people to traffic / abuse
Used them in a variety of circumstances when there are prolific offenders in the area who've been seen near blossom etc
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Post by pingu on Jun 8, 2014 18:45:10 GMT
Hi jmk, i see what you are saying now. We have been lucky in this area, but for those who have the difficulties you describe, I can see now that the harbouring order, or its replacement makes sense.
Thanks for making that clear.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 9, 2015 3:35:10 GMT
Bumped for Redbush
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