A Response to Brown and Ward, 'Decision-Making within the Child's Timeframe'

Abstract

The recent review commissioned by the DfE/Family Justice Council, entitled “Decision-making within a Child's Time Frame” (Brown and Ward, 2013) explicitly states its purpose as ensuring "consistent training...for family justice professionals". It contains a number of strands, and neuroscience figures strongly in its core argument. Much of the report, whilst purporting to be a rigorous scientific evaluation of the neurodevelopmental knowledge-base, has relied heavily on synthesized secondary sources and non-peer reviewed text books. It may thus be described more accurately as an excessively simplified guide to a complex field of work, where knowledge is far from settled and certainly not "policy ready."

Keywords: Neuroscience, family policy, family justice