Calderwood House, Montpellier Parade, Cheltenham GL50 1UA
If you need to prevent a specific action concerning your child or need help resolving an important disagreement about their upbringing, our family solicitors can advise you on Prohibited Steps and Specific Issue Orders. We can help with applications involving issues such as relocation, taking a child abroad, schooling, medical treatment and other important decisions.
Urgent Children Decision Advice
A proposed school change, move or overseas trip can create a deadline before parents have agreed what should happen. You may need to prevent a step being taken or ask the court to resolve a decision that cannot remain unsettled. Our children law solicitors assess the proposed action, existing orders and the effect on your child. We explain if a prohibited steps order, specific issue order or another application fits the problem, including any grounds for urgent action.
Our legal team can contact the other parent where appropriate, prepare a focused statement and seek interim protection or a final decision. We distinguish immediate safety concerns from issues that need notice and fuller evidence, so the application follows the right procedure. Advice covers the documents required, the wording of the proposed order and likely legal costs. We keep the case directed to the child's welfare and the particular decision in dispute.
A prohibited steps order prevents a person from taking a specified step that they could otherwise take as an aspect of parental responsibility. Examples include removing a child from an area or country, changing school, changing a name or taking a particular decision without agreement.
A specific issue order asks the court to decide a particular question, such as which school the child should attend, if a proposed medical treatment should take place, how the child should be brought up in relation to religion, or if the child's name can change. These orders can sit alongside a child arrangements order but do not decide every aspect of care.
A MIAM is normally required before filing Form C100, unless an exemption applies. A case may be urgent where a child is about to be removed, a deadline is imminent or safety is at risk. Urgency does not automatically justify proceeding without notice to the other person.
The court considers a without-notice application only where advance warning would create a serious risk, defeat the purpose or fall within another recognised basis. The applicant must give a complete account and the court will usually list a prompt further hearing. We can advise on the correct level of urgency and the evidence needed.
The strongest application is not necessarily the broadest. A solicitor can define the legal issue, preserve urgent evidence, propose interim arrangements and avoid seeking an order the court cannot or need not make. We can also negotiate undertakings or agreement where these safely resolve the immediate problem.
We prepare or responds to C100 applications, witness statements and urgent hearing documents. We represent clients at hearings and coordinate related child arrangements, name-change or domestic abuse issues.
An application can fail where it is based on adult preference without showing the effect on the child, the evidence is speculative, the order requested is unnecessarily broad, or a different legal route is required. A without-notice request may be refused if urgency or risk is not established by evidence.
Delay can also alter the practical position: a move, school start date or journey may already have occurred. Conversely, making an emergency application where there is time for notice can damage credibility. We assess timing, proportionality and the child's welfare before selecting the procedure.
At 15 September 2026, the fee for a new C100 application for a prohibited steps or specific issue order is £270. Applications made within existing proceedings can attract a different fee. Further costs may include legal representation, a barrister and, less commonly, expert evidence.
Our fees depend on urgency, document preparation, safeguarding issues and the number of hearings. We provide an initial plan and estimate and explain how settlement or a narrower order could affect future cost.
Prohibited Steps and Specific Issue Orders FAQs
Answers on the difference between the orders, common disputes, who can apply, mediation, urgency and court fees.
A prohibited steps order prevents a specified action connected with parental responsibility. A specific issue order decides a particular question about a child's upbringing. Both depend on the child's welfare and the court's powers. We identify the decision or restriction needed so the application seeks a clear and workable outcome.
Urgent advice may be needed if removal is threatened, especially where a trip could become permanent. Consent requirements depend on parental responsibility and existing orders. Keep travel information and relevant messages. We assess the appropriate protective application; imminent abduction or immediate danger may also require police action rather than waiting for a routine appointment.
A specific issue order can resolve a schooling dispute where the legal requirements are met. Evidence may include the available places, travel, educational needs and each proposal's effect on the child. Tell us about application deadlines or a planned transfer so we can assess urgency and the documents needed.
The legal position depends on the destination, existing orders and the child's circumstances. A prohibited steps application may be appropriate, but a move is not automatically prohibited simply because the other parent objects. We examine care, schooling, contact and the proposed timing before advising on negotiation or a court application.
Parents and certain other people can apply without seeking permission, while others may need leave of the court. Parental responsibility, existing orders and the child's living arrangements can matter. We check standing before filing so the application follows the correct procedure and identifies the people who must be notified.
Only where the circumstances justify proceeding without notice. Urgency alone does not always meet that threshold. The court needs an accurate account of the risk and why warning the other person would be inappropriate. A further hearing normally follows so the respondent can be heard. We advise on the evidence required.
A MIAM is normally required unless a valid exemption applies. Urgency, domestic abuse or certain safeguarding circumstances may provide a basis, but the application must explain the relevant facts. We assess the exemption and the appropriate hearing request separately, because exemption from a MIAM does not automatically justify a without-notice order.
The court can address defined questions about a child's upbringing, including these issues, subject to the applicable law and circumstances. Complex medical disputes may require specialist evidence and a different level of court involvement. We clarify the proposed decision, consent position and any existing orders before recommending the application.
Keep the sealed order and evidence of the alleged breach and obtain prompt advice. The response depends on the wording, service and the conduct involved. Enforcement, further protection or another application may be needed. Where there is immediate danger or threatened abduction, contact the police as well as seeking legal advice.
A new C100 application costs £270 at September 2026 rates. Applications within existing proceedings can attract different fees. Legal costs depend on urgency, statement preparation and hearings, with barrister or expert charges where needed. We explain the initial work and potential further costs before proceeding as far as the circumstances allow.
Tell us about the proposed action, any deadline and the orders already in force. We can assess the evidence, urgency and precise decision or protection to seek.
Arrange a telephone call or visit our Cheltenham office by appointment. We assist clients in Cheltenham and the surrounding Gloucestershire area. We will explain the scope of work and legal fees before proceeding.
Call 0330 900 0377, email info@pembridgesolicitors.co.uk or request a consultation.
Pembridge Solicitors
Calderwood House, Montpellier Parade
Cheltenham GL50 1UA
Office visits by appointment.