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Polly Allison and Nathan Baylis for the respondent father in the Court of Appeal in Re B-A (Placement Order and Contact Order) [2026] EWCA Civ 356
26th Mar 2026
Polly Allison and Nathan Baylis, instructed by Jasmine Hollis of Beck Fitzgerald appeared on behalf of the respondent father in the Court of Appeal in Re B-A (Placement Order and Contact Order) [2026] EWCA Civ 356.
Re B-A concerned a local authority’s appeal against the making of an order for direct contact between the father and his children under section 26 of the Adoption and Children Act 2002, following the making of a Placement Order. It is the first example of the Court of Appeal considering an appeal in relation to an order for a birth parent; recent decisions have related to orders for sibling contact.
Dismissing the local authority’s appeal, Cobb LJ noted at paragraph 48 of his judgment (with which Falk LJ and Phillips LJ agreed) that:
“… The caselaw which we have considered on this appeal (i.e., Re P, Re R and C and Re S) all relate to section 26 orders for post-placement contact between siblings, but the approach to such an issue articulated in those authorities applies in my judgment to a case concerning future parental contact without material adaptation.”
Polly, Nathan, and Jasmine all acted for the father on a pro bono basis. A link to the judgment is provided below: