Leaving care

There are several ways in which being looked after by the London Borough Merton can come to an end. A Care Order automatically ends when you reach 18 years of age. You will not have to return to the court for this to happen. However, if you would like your care order to end before you are 18 years old, talk it over with your social worker.

Social Services and the Court may want to find out what your parents think, but if your social worker agrees with you, he or she should support you in going back to the Court to ask for the Care Order to be taken off.

Even if Social Services feels that your Care Order is still needed, you still have the right to go to court and ask for it to be ended.

The Court will hear from both sides and will then decide whether to keep the Care Order or not. Your social worker will advise you on how to get the help of a solicitor, even if he/she does not agree with what you want to do.

If you have been Accommodated without a Care Order, the arrangement may come to an end at any time if agreement is reached between London Borough Merton Children's Services and your parents. If you are over 16 you should have a say in whether the arrangement ends. Your parents may be consulted but in most circumstances, you can choose to remain looked after or leave even if they don't agree.