Overseas Placements Of Children: Reflections From The British Nigeria Law Forum Webinar

Webinar held on 31^st March 2026

I recently had the pleasure of speaking at a webinar hosted by the British Nigeria Law Forum (BNLF), where I was invited to discuss the challenges surrounding placing children with family members overseas in a child protection context.

The session provided an opportunity to explore a complex issue - how courts and practitioners approach care proceedings where potential family carers live outside the UK.

Public law proceedings and overseas family members

My talk focused on care proceedings in which a local authority considers a child to be at risk of significant harm and the court must determine the most appropriate long‑term placement. While the law is clear that family placements must be explored wherever possible, matters become considerably more complex where relatives live overseas.

My interest in this area stems from my doctoral research and professional experience in public law children cases involving international elements.

A changing legal and practical framework

During the webinar, I reflected on how a number of high‑profile cases in the mid‑2010s, many involving foreign national children, led to increased judicial scrutiny of how international cases were being handled. Concerns raised by overseas authorities resulted in a cascade of guidance shaping current practice.

This guidance emphasised the need to address jurisdiction at an early stage, consider transferring proceedings where appropriate, and strengthen engagement with overseas authorities. It also prompted a move away from UK social workers travelling abroad to conduct assessments, with greater reliance placed on Central Authorities, international conventions and organisations such as Children and Families Across Borders (CFAB). A consistent theme was the importance of culturally relevant, as well as legally compliant, assessments.

Assessing family members overseas

One of the key findings from my research was the sheer scale of overseas assessment work. In the 100 cases I analysed, 91% involved at least one parent or relative who needed to be assessed abroad, often more than one.

Despite this, there remains no single, consistent route for commissioning such assessments. In practice, this has resulted in delays, repeated assessments and extended proceedings, with cases involving international elements lasting significantly longer than the national average.

For children particularly babies and young infants this can mean long periods in interim foster care before a final decision is made about their future.

Tensions between domestic frameworks and international practice

I also explored the tension between domestic assessment frameworks and child‑care practices overseas. Many of the legal structures we rely on in England and Wales were never designed with cross‑border kinship care in mind.

Child protection systems and family arrangements vary widely across jurisdictions. In some countries, kinship care is informal and deeply embedded in community life, while state involvement may be minimal. Attempts to force those arrangements into a UK regulatory model can distort both the assessment process and the outcome for the child.

Learning from case examples

Using anonymised case examples, I highlighted how the perceived adequacy of an assessment can sometimes be determinative of outcomes, rather than the actual strengths of a proposed placement.

In some cases, relatives overseas were initially ruled out based on limited or informal assessments, only for fuller, culturally informed assessments to later support placement with family members abroad. These examples demonstrate the importance of valuing local expertise and avoiding assumptions that UK‑based assessments are inherently more reliable.

A child‑centred approach

I concluded by emphasising the importance of a more child‑centred approach to overseas placements. This includes recognising the limitations of domestic frameworks in international contexts, valuing culturally informed assessments, and focusing on the child’s lived experience — their relationships, identity and long‑term welfare.

As international elements become more common in care proceedings, continued reflection on how these cases are approached will be essential to achieving better outcomes for children and families.

Learn more about the British Nigeria Law Forum here.

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