(Court of Appeal; Pill, Hooper and Munby LJJ; 17 March 2011)
The parents lived together in Sweden before moving together to England, where the child was born. When the child was about 18-months-old the French mother attempted suicide. On release from hospital she went to live in a hostel. After an incident the father sought residence, specific issue and prohibited steps orders.
The judge's decision to suspend direct contact between mother and child for 18 months was upheld. Although delay could be damaging, this was not an intractable contact case and the suspension of contact was in accordance with expert recommendation as part of a plan to make contact work in the future.
