Susan George, instructed by ITN Solicitors on behalf of the children, and Tom Wilson, instructed by Freemans Solicitors on behalf of the first respondent, appeared in the High Court in the case of London Borough of Barking and Dagenham v Mother & Ors [2025] EWHC 2889. This case concerned three siblings (C, E and M) who were left in England after a complex history of movement between Uganda, Tanzania, Kenya, the Netherlands and the UK. The mother has lived in the UAE since 2022, while the father, a Dutch citizen, brought the children to England in early 2025 to obtain medical treatment for the eldest child, C. When the father and one child left England and were refused re-entry, C and M were left without a carer, prompting the Local Authority to issue care proceedings and, later, inherent jurisdiction proceedings relating to C’s serious medical treatment.

This hearing focused on jurisdiction. In respect of C and M the Court concluded that, it not being possible to establish their habitual residence, they fall within the ambit of Art 6(2) of the 1996 Hague Convention and so has jurisdiction as it would under Art 5 1996 HC continue the proceedings. Jurisdiction was not established in respect of E.