Nic Robson
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nicrobson.bsky.social
Nic Robson
@nicrobson.bsky.social
340 followers 320 following 33 posts
PhD Researcher into family court. BSc and MSc (judicial bias) in Forensic Psychology (GMBPsS). SHERA member.
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nicrobson.bsky.social
Nic Robson @nicrobson.bsky.social · Nov 20
Let's talk about findings from my research into gender in the UK family courts: a thread....
Reposted by Nic Robson
sheraresearch.bsky.social
Short summary of the 'alienating behaviours' guidance. Many positives for which we are grateful but much more to be done re CSA and training of judiciary. Ultimately, the courts require nothing short of overhaul. Let's hope this new guidance is used effectively to protect children and adult victims.
For the avoidance of doubt, the Family Justice Council (FJC) recognises that ‘parental alienation syndrome’ has no evidential basis and is considered a harmful pseudo-science. Concepts of ‘parental alienation syndrome’ and ‘parental alienation’ are increasingly exploited within family litigation’ GREAT....however: They will continue to use it anyway... BUT...this will now be based on the Domestic Abuse Commissioner’s much better RRR framework: This guidance will therefore refer to a child’s unexplained ‘reluctance, resistance and refusal’ to spend time with a parent (RRR) ‘Alienating Behaviours range in intensity and their impact on children, but these harms can be far reaching. They can affect a child’s emotional, social and psychological development.’ This is a false assertion. There is no child-study that evidences long term harm from ‘alienating behaviours’. The only studies that exist are based on retrospective studies with adults who already self-identify as ‘alienated’ The guidance at several points cites studies on alienating behaviours of children as harmful to them - there are NO child studies evidencing harm to children in existence - all the studies are on adults who self identify as alienated - you cannot use these studies to state there is harm to children. The guidance references Hine et al, a case in point espousing harm to children based on adult participants - proving our point Moving on...’A court would therefore need to be satisfied that three elements are established before it could conclude that Alienating Behaviours had occurred: 1) the child is reluctant, resisting or refusing to engage in, a relationship with a parent or carer; and 2) the reluctance, resistance or refusal is not consequent on the actions of that parent towards the child or the other parent, which may therefore be an appropriate justified rejection by the child (AJR – see Glossary above), or is not caused by any other factor such as the child’s alignment, affinity or attachment (AAA – see Glossary above); and 3) the other parent has engaged in behaviours that have directly or indirectly impacted on the child, leading to the child’s reluctance, resistance or refusal to engage in a relationship with that parent.’ ...more positives: ‘It is recognised that allegations of ‘parental alienation’ are often raised in response to allegations of domestic abuse. Concerns have been raised that allegations of Alienating Behaviours are used as a form of post-separation control/abuse, and as a litigation tactic to silence survivors of domestic abuse (both parents and children) and side-line their allegations and experiences of abuse and harm In light of their respective prevalence, and the relative harm to children and adult survivors, allegations of domestic abuse and ‘parental alienation’ cannot be equated. The risk, relevance and weight attached to ‘parental alienation’ and domestic abuse should not automatically be considered equal.’
December 11, 2024 at 2:37 PM
Reposted by Nic Robson
sheraresearch.bsky.social
The guidance fails to even mention child sexual abuse, who will be training CAFCASS and the judiciary in deciphering where there is harm from domestic abuse, child sexual abuse and/or harmful manipulation of a child against another parent.
Appropriate justified rejection (AJR) and attachment, affinity and alignment (AAA) 19.The court should remain mindful that a child might withdraw from a relationship with a parent for a variety of reasons. 20.Children can and do come to their own conclusions about what has happened in their family and how this affects their attitude to living with, or spending time with, one of their parents. They may wish to make choices or exert an influence over how they live their lives. 21.The child’s response may be an AJR because of harmful parenting, including neglect or exposure to abuse (of themselves or their other parent). 22.Their actions may arise from alignment or affinity with one parent. They may not have strong negative feelings for the other parent but prefer spending time with one parent. Alignment may arise from the child’s experience of the other parent’s level of involvement in their lives, poor parenting, developmentally inappropriate expectations of a parent or merely differing parenting styles. 23.The child’s behaviour and feelings may be an attachment strategy, their way of eliciting care from the parent they live with or protecting that relationship. 24.Alignment and attachment issues can result in RRR without any Alienating Behaviours being perpetrated by an adult. Indeed, it is important to recognise that a child’s RRR may remain unexplained, and the lack of a clear explanation does not confirm exposure to Alienating Behaviours. The child may have other reasons or motivations for their actions, e.g., their feelings about a new adult relationship or unhappiness about the practical arrangements in place. It is not appropriate for experts to ‘diagnose’ or risk assess Alienating Behaviours. The court’s deliberations should begin with domestic abuse and review the Alienating Behaviours allegations through that prism. If a court finds that domestic abuse has occurred resulting in AJR by the child, the allegations of alienation will fail. The burden is on the parent alleging ABs to prove the behaviours and harm: ‘a parent alleging Alienating Behaviours must discharge the burden of establishing both that such harmful behaviour has occurred, and that this behaviour has led to a child’s unjustified reluctance, resistance or refusal to spend time with that parent. There is no equivalence between domestic abuse and Alienating Behaviours. Domestic abuse is a criminal offence and both a parent/carer and a child may be a victim.’ In our view then - these criminal cases do not belong in family civil courts but specialised criminal courts ‘Care should be taken not to dismiss the voice of the child in the absence of compelling evidence to show that psychological manipulation has impacted on their capacity to freely express their wishes. Care should be taken not to assume that the style of language a child uses when speaking to professionals, in isolation, confirms an allegation of Alienating Behaviour or ‘coaching’.
December 11, 2024 at 2:37 PM
Reposted by Nic Robson
sheraresearch.bsky.social
Overall, we welcome this as a positive step BUT

We are not convinced this will stop legal professionals and abusers from counter-claiming alienating behaviours: full guidance here:
www.judiciary.uk/wp-content/u...
Negatives: Apart from quoting adult studies again to evidence so-called harm to children on ‘alienating behaviours’ as detailed above: The guidance fails to even mention child sexual abuse The guidance fails to mention who will be training CAFCASS and the judiciary in deciphering where there is harm from domestic abuse, child sexual abuse and/or harmful manipulation of a child against another parent. It is essential that courts have access to ongoing abuse, child development and trauma training and that this is delivered by accredited experts. Overall, we welcome this as a positive step BUT We are not convinced this will stop legal professionals and abusers from counter-claiming alienating behaviours: ‘Whilst allegations of Alienating Behaviour might be raised in the original application or response documents, the allegations might be raised for the first time at any stage in proceedings e.g., at the first case management hearing, or at a subsequent point, as a reason for the breakdown in child/parent relations. 33.It is incumbent on the court to case manage robustly to avoid, whenever possible...’ Vulnerable families will still face protracted and traumatic litigation. This must stop. full guidance here: https://www.judiciary.uk/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Family-Justice-Council-Guidance-on-responding-to-allegations-of-alienating-behaviour-2024-1-1.pdf
December 11, 2024 at 2:37 PM
Reposted by Nic Robson
fra.europa.eu
Safety at work? Sadly not for the 1 in 3 women in the EU that have been sexually harassed at work.

Shocking survey findings from @eu-eurostat.extwitter.link /
@eurightsagency.bsky.social / EIGE.

From prevention to protection, employers take note.

For more see: europa.eu/!rybfbP
How many women were sexually harassed at work? EU gender-based violence survey.
December 7, 2024 at 8:49 AM
Reposted by Nic Robson
yorkshirebylines.co.uk
✍️ British mum speaks out about her modern slavery experience for charity campaign

In July, Yorkshire charity Cayseway launched a new campaign with an important film highlighting the reality of modern slavery

#AbolitionOfSlavery
British mum speaks out about her modern slavery experience for Yorkshire charity campaign
Yorkshire charity launches campaign with an important film highlighting the reality of modern slavery
yorkshirebylines.co.uk
December 2, 2024 at 8:19 AM
Reposted by Nic Robson
bigissue.com
The charity Migrant Help estimates that there are currently around 122,000 people trapped in modern slavery across the UK – and the number is increasing. Read more. ⬇️
https://buff.ly/4igH8cv
December 4, 2024 at 2:13 PM
nicrobson.bsky.social
"We promote Open Justice in the Court of Protection"

Precedent exists which family court could follow.
openjusticecop.bsky.social Open Justice Court of Protection Project @openjusticecop.bsky.social · Dec 3
Take a look at the Featured Hearings on our website if you are looking for a Court of Protection hearing to observe Wednesday 4th December:

openjusticecourtofprotection.org

#NotSecretCourt #openjustice
December 4, 2024 at 12:37 AM
Reposted by Nic Robson
shrinkatlarge.bsky.social
New figures from the Joseph Rowntree Foundation:

- 7 million families are going without essentials, including 5.4 million without enough food.
- 86% of those on Universal Credit, and 93% of those with UC deductions, are affected.

Overgenerous benefits, #Dispatches?
A bar chart titled “Number of low-income households in hardship, May 2022 – October 2024” displays data from the Joseph Rowntree Foundation (JRF) cost of living tracker survey conducted by Savanta. The chart is divided into three categories: 1. Going without essentials: Both May 2024 and October 2024 show 7 million low-income households struggling without basic necessities. 2. Including food insecurity: Both May 2024 and October 2024 report 5.4 million low-income households experiencing food insecurity. 3. In arrears: Both May 2024 and October 2024 show 4.3 million households in arrears. The visual demonstrates consistent hardship levels across the reported periods.
December 3, 2024 at 8:37 PM
Reposted by Nic Robson
sheraresearch.bsky.social
Thanks @safelives.bsky.social: Data held by police only provides a partial picture of the actual level of domestic abuse experienced, as only 1 in 5 people report to the police -we need a national domestic abuse data dashboard which draws together qual/quant data from survivors, services, Maracs LAs
December 2, 2024 at 10:42 AM
nicrobson.bsky.social
Academics! This this is worth reading to help reach more people with your research. Also contains some great statistics, so win win.
altmetric.com Altmetric @altmetric.com · Dec 3
BLUESKY MEGA-THREAD

Altmetric is thrilled and also LITERALLY RELIEVED to officially announce:

We are now tracking research attention as it happens on Bluesky!

We have been picking up posts on the site since late Oct.

Our team is on Bluesky all day answering questions.

Let's get into it!
Blueksy Mentions are now in Altmetric. It's been 84 years meme #AcademicSky #HigherEd #MedSky #HMSky #Altmetrics #Medlibs #Metascience
December 3, 2024 at 3:53 PM
Reposted by Nic Robson
bsky.app
Scientists, academics, researchers: We’re excited to share that @altmetric.com is now tracking mentions of your research on Bluesky! 🧪
altmetric.com Altmetric @altmetric.com · Dec 3
There are already many articles for which there is more attention on Bluesky than on other comparable micro-blogging sites, meaning the academic community and the general public have clearly adopted Bluesky as one of its core places to disseminate and discuss new research.

A Place of Joy.
‘A place of joy’: why scientists are joining the rush to Bluesky Researchers say the social-media platform — an alternative to X — offers more control over the content they see and the people they engage with.: https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-024-03784-6
December 3, 2024 at 2:10 PM
nicrobson.bsky.social
If anyone is interested in "gifts that give back" for Christmas this year here's a thread:

Migrateful: www.migrateful.org

Through training and holistic support, refugees teach cooking classes (online available) in their traditional dishes. The vegetarian Syrian cooking classes look delicious!

/1
Migrateful | Recipes Rebuilding Lives
Migrateful runs cookery classes taught by refugees and migrants on their journey to integration. Migrateful is an award-winning UK charity.
www.migrateful.org
December 3, 2024 at 12:25 AM
nicrobson.bsky.social
When you have a talk with another researcher about ethics and it is exciting, and talking about each other's research is also exciting then you know you're an academic 😅
November 25, 2024 at 2:56 PM
Reposted by Nic Robson
resolutesupport.bsky.social
Children's voices are being ignored in family court proceedings. Their wishes, feelings, and experiences are often dismissed or minimized. This is a breach of their human rights and must be addressed. Children deserve to be heard and taken seriously. ##ChildrenFirst
November 22, 2024 at 10:05 AM
nicrobson.bsky.social
November 21, 2024 at 3:49 PM
Reposted by Nic Robson
jennski27.bsky.social
Through my #PhDResearch on women's experiences of #economicabuse in #Scotland, the research participants & I co-developed the post-separation economic abuse wheel. The wheel captures the women's experiences of economic abuse after separating. It's available for download here: shorturl.at/5dtMP
November 21, 2024 at 11:31 AM
nicrobson.bsky.social
Let's talk about findings from my research into gender in the UK family courts: a thread....
November 20, 2024 at 11:39 AM
nicrobson.bsky.social
✨️Seeing so many phenomenal academics and researchers on here! ✨️ So I'm jumping on the band wagon and creating a starter pack! Reply if you are in the field of social justice and wish to be added. If you're interested in global research and policy, give everyone a follow! go.bsky.app/J8N3wzA
November 20, 2024 at 10:58 AM
Reposted by Nic Robson
sheraresearch.bsky.social
Resharing for the new folks :-) go.bsky.app/NCCEjuu
November 17, 2024 at 9:01 PM