A father has been found guilty of coercive and controlling behaviour towards the mother of his child.

The case involved a mother who had three children aged 6, 4 and 2, all by different men.

The local authority became concerned that the father was exerting coercive control over the mother. Its evidence included:

· a report to the police by a housing officer seeking a welfare check on the mother after hearing the father shouting at her during a telephone call

· an incident in which he removed the youngest child from the mother for several nights and refused to tell her where they were

· a statement by the mother to the police that he had used her money for gambling and had taken her phone

· a report to the local authority by nursery staff after the eldest child said that the father had assaulted a family friend and broken a mirror

· a report to the police by a family friend who alleged that he had assaulted her

· a statement by the mother to a social worker that after leaving him, she felt she had to return because of fear of what he would do if she did not.

A parenting assessment of the mother and the father was largely positive, although it also mentioned concerns about the mother’s low self-esteem and the dynamics of the couple’s relationship.

The judge concluded that the father was guilty of coercive and controlling behaviour and financial abuse of the mother, and his actions caused the children emotional harm.

He made orders for the eldest two children to live with their fathers and adjourned the case concerning the youngest child.

The Court of Appeal upheld that decision.

It held that the judge’s findings were securely founded on the evidence and made in a way that had not compromised the fairness of the process.

Having concluded that the father’s conduct towards the mother amounted to coercion and control, the judge was entitled to conclude that the youngest child was likely to suffer significant harm as a result.

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Case Citations: L (Fact-finding Hearing: Fairness), Re Also known as: Z v Local Authority Court of Appeal (Civil Division) [2022] EWCA Civ 169 – Baker LJ

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