Wondering what your chances of getting a Prohibited Steps Order are? This is your definitive guide to this powerful and useful court order.
Parenting is always a challenge but is made all the more so when you’re not in a relationship with the other parent, and even worse when you don’t get on.
You can apply to the family court to decide where a child should live, what their relationship with their other parent looks like, and even to help make decisions you don’t agree on, but if you need to point-blank stop the other parent from doing something you need a Prohibited Step Order.
Our Essential Guide to Prohibited Steps Orders will answer all your questions about this useful type of court order.
Table of Contents (Click to open)
What is a Prohibited Steps Order?
A Prohibited Steps Order is an order made by the family court which makes a clear, enforceable decision preventing something from happening to a child, usually stopping someone who holds parental responsibility for a child from exercising it in a particular way.
As well as stopping someone, usually a parent, from doing something, a Prohibited Steps Order can also prevent that person, from acting, or attempting to act, alone in relation to a future issue.
Examples of how a specific issue order can be used include:-
- That a parent must not give consent for a child to have an operation;
- That a parent should not act alone or attempt to act alone in applying for or accepting a place at a particular school for a child;
- That a child should not be raised to practice a particular religious belief; or
- That a parent should not be allowed to move out of the local area with a child.
An application for a Prohibited Steps order can be made on its own, to prevent a single action, or can be applied for as part of other proceedings and, of course, a court can make a Prohibited Step Order of its own volition if it feels it is necessary to prevent a dispute arising in the future.
Prohibited Step orders can be confusing so our guide provides a full explanation of this aspect of family law, answering many of the most common questions people have. However, you should always get in touch if you would like to discuss your particular circumstances.
What is the difference between a Prohibited Step Order and a Specific Issue Order?
It can be difficult to understand whether your particular circumstances require a Specific Issue or Prohibited Step Order.
You should take professional advice if you are unclear, however, if that is not an option the key distinction between the two types of order is that a Prohibited Step Order prevents someone taking a specified action with regard to a child, whereas a Specific Issue Order resolves a specific dispute about a child.
The table below should help explain the distinction however if you are unclear make use of our free hour consultation to discuss your circumstances and get free advice on which order you require.
| Issue | Prohibited Step | Specific Issue |
|---|---|---|
| Schooling | The other parent must not act alone in choosing a school place | The parents will apply for a place at school X |
| Name | The child should not be known by any name other than “X” | The child’s surname should be “X” |
| Where the child lives | The child should not be removed permanently from the UK | The child should live in Poland with his father |
How long does a Prohibited Steps Order last?
A Prohibited Steps Order is not a permanent order so it will only last until the event it has been put in place to prevent, such as applying for a primary school place, has passed.
For other events an order might require a time-limit, such as prohibiting an action for the next 12 months.
If no timescale or key event applies then the orders effect will end when the child reaches 16, although you can apply at any point before then to have the effect of the order varied or removed entirely as your situation or need for the order changes.
This is because by the age of 16 a child is generally capable of making their own decisions and choices.
Prior to its expiry, the court can also be asked to extend the order beyond the age of 16 if needed but this generally requires exceptional circumstances.
As a result, the court would not make a Prohibited Steps order for a child if that child has already reached age 16 and it would be very slow to make an order for a child who was approaching 16 years old.
Do I have to attend mediation for a prohibited Steps Order?
Most applicants for a Prohibited Steps Order are the parents of the child and mediation between parents is proven to be a highly effective way to avoid going to court.
If it works well then you are able to resolve your dispute and simply do not need a court order.
The effectiveness of mediation is also enhanced by the acknowledgement that mediation is the mandatory precursor to an application to the court.
A Prohibited Steps Order does require attendance at a Mediation Information and Assessment Meeting (MIAM), you need sign-off from an accredited mediator to make your application.
However, there are a number of exemptions that apply, such as your being a victim of domestic violence. It is also possible to make an emergency application for a Prohibited Steps Order if the circumstances require it. Any emergency or urgent application will be dealt with much sooner than an application that is not urgent.
How do I apply for a prohibited Steps Order in an emergency?
If you are the parent of a child and you need to stop their other parent from making a decision in an emergency you must make an application based on grounds of urgency, and potentially, ‘ex parte‘ which is to say without notice being given to the other person.
You will need to be sure that your application requires this, for example to prevent a child from being removed from the UK imminently or relating to medical treatment, and you should expect to have, and be able to, convince the court of that level of urgency when making your application.
There is no need to attend a MIAM as both urgent and without notice hearings are exempt from the mediation requirement (although you can expect to be sent to mediation if you use either exemption frivolously).
If the court agrees that your circumstances are urgent it will hold a hearing significantly sooner than it would normally, and may hold a hearing without notice.
This means the court would hold a hearing with you present, but not the other parent.
This may result in an interim order being made prohibiting the other parent from acting until the court has the chance to arrange and hold a hearing with everyone present so a final decision can be made.
How much does a Prohibited Steps Order cost?
An application for a Prohibited Steps Order will cost you £235 as this is the standard application fee set by the courts for any Child Arrangement application made. Unfortunately no one escapes paying this fee one way or the other.
When considering the cost for a Prohibited Step Order you need to take into account more than just the £235 application fee required by the court as this is only the minimum you’ll have to pay, and assumes you’ll be preparing the application yourself, managing your case, maintaining any bundle, representing yourself in court and producing any statements required without any professional assistance.
That’s fine if that is your plan but you need to understand what your needs and capabilities are and how they will be paid for as part of your decision to apply for a Prohibited Steps Order.
If you are on a low income for example you may be eligible for help paying court fee’s and if you qualify you might have some or all of the application fee paid for you.
In exceptional circumstances you might also qualify for legal aid, which is public funding to help people who cannot afford to pay their own legal costs and who need access to the court system.
If you are eligible legal aid will help you cover the cost of your application, any mediation and will provide you with legal representation in court.
You are welcome to contact us if you’d like to find out if you’d qualify for legal aid.
You should always check your eligibility for legal aid but if you do not qualify it’s well worth finding out how much professional legal support will cost you and getting a few quotes to help you decide if this is an option for you. It is always your premium option to have professional legal support.
If cost is an issue for you you might want to look at doing most things yourself but paying for help on the more technical aspects. For example, you might feel comfortable making the application yourself and dealing with any case management hearing unrepresented, but have someone give you initial advice to make sure you know what you are doing, or to have someone represent you for the hearing where the final decision will be made.
If you properly understand what you need to do and know your abilities and limitations then you can be confident with getting help with the bits you can’t do yourself. You don’t have to just throw money at someone and let them deal with every aspect of your application, it’s fine nowadays to stand your ground and be specific with what you want to pay for and what you don’t to help you save money.
Who can apply for a Prohibited Steps Order?
Whilst the actual process for applying for a Prohibited Steps Order is not dissimilar from that for Child Arrangements, not everyone can simply just make an application.
There are two types of people who can apply for a Prohibited Steps Order and the process is slightly different for each so you need to understand which category of person you fall into.
People who hold parental responsibility for the child have a statutory right to apply for a Prohibited Steps Order, whilst everyone else comes under the second type of person who needs to ask for the courts permission to apply.
In general terms, a child’s parents can always apply but in the case of a child’s father, they should be aware that they will hold parental responsibility if they were married to the mother at the time the child was born or are named as the father on the child’s birth certificate.
Others who might hold parental responsibility include any appointed guardian or anyone named as the person a child lives with under a Child Arrangement Order. These people may apply as of right, which is to say by simply filling out the application form.
Notably, a grandparent has no automatic right to apply for a Prohibited Steps Order for their grandchild and they, like everyone else, may only apply for an order if they have the consent of every other person who holds parental responsibility for the child or failing that with the permission of the court.
Anyone who does not hold parental responsibility for a child must ask the court for permission to apply for a Prohibited Steps Order.
How do I ask the Court's permission to apply for a Prohibited Steps Order?
Having determined that you don’t have an automatic right to apply you must ask the courts permission to make your application.
The application form which is used to apply for a Prohibited Steps Order asks whether the applicant is entitled to apply or if they require permission and it is as simple as ticking the box stating you need permission and are asking for it in the application.
You can then fill out Form C2 to accompany your application form. This form is the application to join or leave existing proceedings or to request permission to apply.
Submit your C2 and C100 together and the court will contact you.
In deciding whether the application should be allowed the court may hold a short hearing to consider what the person is applying for, how that might affect the child and the nature of their connection to the child.
They are likely to also seek the views of the child’s parents or anyone else who holds parental responsibility.
What happens after I submit my application for a Prohibited Steps Order?
After you submit your application to the court it will go through a validation process which will check your application and decide if you have provided sufficient information for your application to proceed.
This process will be kind to you but if there is not sufficient information to allow the court to proceed you will be contacted and be given the opportunity to correct your application without having to submit it again.
This will inevitably delay the processing of your application so it is important to provide as much information as you can.
Once validated you will be sent a copy of your application along with an information booklet and a notice of hearing which will tell you the date and time of your first hearing, along with details of how to obtain joining instructions if the hearing will be a remote or virtual hearing.
Letters from the court will refer to you as the ‘Applicant’ and the person or people you have the dispute with will be the ‘Respondent(s)’.
The respondent will also be sent a copy of your application form, the notice of hearing and the acknowledgement form.
The court will also send a copy of your application and the notice of hearing to an organisation called Cafcass (or Cafcass Cymru in Wales) who will contact you before your first hearing.
How will the Court decide an application for a Prohibited Steps Order?
The Children Act 1989 lists a number of issues which are at the forefront of the court’s mind at all times. These are: –
- the ascertainable wishes and feelings of the child concerned (considered in the light of his age and understanding);
- his physical, emotional and educational needs;
- the likely effect on him of any change in his circumstances;
- his age, sex, background and any characteristics of his which the court considers relevant;
- any harm which he has suffered or is at risk of suffering;
- how capable each of his parents, and any other person in relation to whom the court considers the question to be relevant, is of meeting his needs;
- the range of powers available to the court under this Act in the proceedings in question.
This list is called the ‘Welfare Checklist’ and they guide the court in making any decision about your child.
The court will also consider what is called the ‘no order principle’ which is to say that a court will not make an order unless it considers that doing so would be better for the child than making no order at all.
Are there any risks when applying for a Prohibited Steps Order?
A court order should always be a last resort and one of the main reasons for this is the court’s ability to make an order of its own volition.
Irrelevant of what you apply for you may end up with an order neither of you wants.
You could well have applied for an order for one thing but if a court thinks the best thing for your child is that they do the exact opposite that is what will happen.
The court will make whatever order it thinks your child needs. This includes Prohibited Steps Orders and it is well within the court’s power to make an order in anticipation of a forthcoming dispute between a child’s parents.
For this reason alone anyone considering applying for a Prohibited Steps Order should seek professional advice.