Age Assessment Training 22 June 2022

Aims

This course is designed for social workers, team managers and local authority solicitors to enable participants to feel confident that they are acting within the law when conducting age assessments within their area and to instil in them the confidence to be able to defend those assessments in court if necessary.

Learning outcomes

By the end of the course, participants will be able to:

• Distinguish between the different types of assessment e.g., initial assessment, full assessment and Merton assessment;

• Identify a public law challenge and distinguish it from a factual challenge and learn how to defend against each;

• Identify urgent applications;

• Distinguish between paper decisions and renewal hearings in the Admin court

• Prepare for substantive hearings in the Tribunal

Programme

The course will include the following key topics while exploring the individual experience of participants in their day-to-day practice

• An introduction to Merton and the different types of age assessment

• The difference between public law and procedural challenges as opposed to factual challenges

• Pre-action protocol, defending urgent applications, the AOS and summary grounds of defence

• Role of the Admin court as a filter

• Role of the Tribunal as a fact finder

• Further discussion, questions, evaluations and close

The course will be delivered by Becket Bedford

With more than 30 years relevant advocacy in all courts, the Supreme Court and the tribunal, Becket has worked extensively with local authorities, claimant solicitors and Government Legal Departments. In the past 10 years Becket has acted in numerous age disputes after appearing in R (Kadri) v Birmingham City Council [2012] EWCA Civ 1432.  Becket is keen to share with all parties his substantial insights regarding the availability of judicial protection for children in age disputes, asylum claims and detention claims. The course will offer attendees an opportunity to explore in depth the practical and constitutional limits of judicial review in this field.

Includes all course materials and a certificate. Course access details will be emailed direct to delegate(s) upon completion of your booking.  If you have any queries, please do not hesitate to email assistant@edgetraining.org.uk  or call 07341 277487.