Shared Parenting Information Group (SPIG) UK
- promoting responsible shared parenting after separation and divorce -
County courts - contact applications - notes about the data
see our comments for interpretation of the data
Meaning of the data columns
Applications made
The number of applications for contact made in each year.
Outcomes
- Applications withdrawn
The number of applications withdrawn with the agreement of the court in each year.
(may include withdrawal of some applications made in previous years)
- Applications refused
The number of instances each year where the court has refused to make an order or has made no order.
(may include refusals of some applications made in previous years)
- Orders of no order
This is made when the court has applied the principle of non-intervention under section 1(5) of the Children Act 1989.
(may include 'no order' for some applications made in previous years)
- Orders made
The number of orders made by the court each year.
(may include hearings of some applications made in previous years)
(may also include orders made by the court of its own volition)
Welfare reports requested
The number of welfare reports requested by the courts in each year.
Although the courts do not distinguish between the applications for which the reports are made (Parental Responsibility, Residence, Contact, Prohibited Steps and Specific Issue), it is reasonable to assume that half the reports are prepared for contact applications
Calculated values
- Percentage outcomes [Outcomes defined as above]
100 * (Particular outcome) / (Total outcomes) in each year.
Red highlight = more than twice the national average for this outcome AND five or more of this outcome
(The limit of five is intended to avoid highlighting misleading results at small courts)
Availability of data
| Year | Months for which data is available |
| 1992 | Jan - Dec (first full year of Children Act 1989)
- data now omitted from charts |
| 1993 | Jan - Dec |
| 1994 | Jan - Dec |
| 1995 | Jan - Dec |
| 1996 | Jan - Dec |
| 1997 | Jan - Dec |
| 1998 | Jan - Dec |
| 1999 | Jan - Dec |
| 2000 | Jan - Dec |
| 2001 | Jan - Dec |
| 2002 | Jan - Dec |
| 2003 | Jan - Dec |
Note: some courts have closed, opened or merged over the years,
and as a result there may be years for which there is no data
- these are shown by '...' in the tables
Prepared from data provided by the Lord Chancellor's Department
Last updated - 6 September 2004
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