What if the Office of the Children’s Lawyer (OCL) wants to do an assessment during a supervised visit?
Q.
What if the Office of the Children’s Lawyer (OCL) wants to do an assessment during a supervised visit?
A.
Our policy about the OCL observing visits is that:
The involvement of the OCL must be provided for in a court order.
The OCL assessors must contact the centre Supervisor to book a time for such observation in advance.
The OCL assessors must provide APCO with consent forms from both parties.
APCO staff must be present during the visit and must complete an observation report.
If parties need an interpreter, APCO will provide an interpreter, using the interpreter services APCO is registered with.
If the OCL assessors need to get a copy of our observation report, they can do so by following the "request for reports" policy.
The OCL will not be permitted to observe two visits/two clients at the same time
The OCL must sign a confidentiality form before entering the observation room
Q.
If the OCL requests copies of the observation reports, will the reports be provided to all other parties as well?
Q.
If the OCL requests copies of the observation reports, will the reports be provided to all other parties as well?
A.
No. If the Office of the Children’s Lawyer requests observation reports, it will be the only agency that receives copies of the reports. They will not be sent to the parties or their
Lawyers.
