§ Mrs. Renée Shortasked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will seek to make it a statutory right for parents and foster parents to be present or represented at any social work case conference at which their child's future is to be discussed.
§ Sir George YoungSocial services departments have a general obligation to promote the welfare of children arid this will be the principle by which they are guided in individual cases. I am advised that decisions affecting a child's future will nearly always be discussed with parents and foster parents. It is increasingly the practice to invite them to case conferences, but there will sometimes be circumstances in which it will not be appropriate to do so because it would not be in the interests of the child.
My right hon. Friend does not consider that this is a suitable matter for legislation.