Leah's phone rang at 12.40 on a Tuesday, from a number she did not recognise. She nearly let it ring out. It was Cafcass, asking if now was a good time to talk about her son. She was standing in the staff kitchen at work, with two colleagues making toast behind her.

Leah is a composite, built from many parents I have sat beside, with every detail changed. But that moment is real for thousands of parents every year. The Cafcass safeguarding call is often the very first time anyone from the family justice system speaks to you about your child, and most people are not ready for it. Listen, listen. You do not need to be clever on this call. You need to be ready, private, honest and brief. This guide shows you exactly how to prepare for a Cafcass safeguarding call, step by step.

If you have not read it yet, our guide to what happens at a FHDRA explains the first hearing itself. This one zooms in on the call that comes before it.

What is the Cafcass safeguarding call?

When someone applies for a child arrangements order, a prohibited steps order or a specific issue order, usually on form C100, Cafcass is asked to look at safety before the first hearing. In Wales the same job is done by Cafcass Cymru. The rules are in Practice Direction 12B, the Child Arrangements Programme, and they are clearer than most people expect:

• It is confined to safety. The Practice Direction says the steps Cafcass takes before the first hearing "shall be confined to matters of safety" (paragraph 13.2). It is not an investigation into who is the better parent.
• Checks come first. For child arrangements applications, Cafcass seeks information from local authorities and carries out police checks on the parties (paragraph 13.3).
• Then a phone interview with each party. Cafcass will, if possible, carry out telephone "risk identification interviews" with the parties (paragraph 13.4). Cafcass says it usually makes an appointment to talk to each parent on the phone, to find out whether you have any concerns about your child's welfare or safety.
• Your child is not contacted. The Cafcass officer will not start contact with your child before the first hearing (paragraph 13.6), and you are unlikely to have a home visit at this stage.

Only the parties to the case are interviewed. If you want the court to see a statement from someone else, Cafcass says it must go to the court, not to Cafcass.

When the call happens: the timeline

That means the call can land in a busy week. Treat the fortnight before your hearing as on call time. Answer unknown numbers, check your voicemail and your email, and if you miss a call, ring back the same day.

What Cafcass asks on the safeguarding call

Cafcass does not publish a script, and every officer works a little differently. What is clear from the rules is that the conversation is about safety and welfare. In my experience, the questions usually cover the same ground as the safety questions on the C100 and form C1A. Expect to be asked about:

• The current arrangements: where your child lives, when they see each parent, and how handovers work now.
• Any worries about your child's safety or welfare with either parent, or with anyone else in either household.
• Domestic abuse, including controlling or coercive behaviour, not only physical violence.
• Drugs, alcohol or other things that you believe affect anyone's ability to care for your child safely.
• Any involvement of the police or children's services, now or in the past.
• Any risk of your child being taken away without agreement, including abroad.
• What you are asking the court for, and whether anything could be agreed for now.
• What you need at court, such as a separate waiting area, an interpreter, or attending by video.

You may also be asked the same things you wrote in your application or your response. That is normal. The safeguarding letter must say which court forms (the C100, the C7 response and any C1A) Cafcass has considered, so your answers on the phone and what you wrote should match.

How to prepare for a Cafcass safeguarding call, step by step

1. Keep your phone close and answer unknown numbersSave any Cafcass number from your welcome letter. If a call comes at a bad moment, it is fine to say: "I want to give this my full attention. Can we book a time today or tomorrow?"
2. Find a private place where it is safe to talkNot the staff kitchen, not the school gate, not in the car with your child in the back. If the other parent or anyone else could overhear, say so and ask for a call back. Your child should never hear this call.
3. Write one page before the call comesYour child's age and routine. The current arrangements. Exactly what you are asking for. Any concerns, each with a date, what happened, and how it affected your child. Keep it next to your phone.
4. Have your papers to handYour copy of the C100 or your response, any form C1A, the notice of hearing and any previous orders. If the officer refers to something you wrote, you can find it in seconds.
5. Decide what you could agree for nowThe officer may ask whether anything can be agreed before the hearing. A specific, child focused answer, such as a Saturday afternoon or a video call midweek, helps far more than "more time".
6. Write notes straight afterThe date, the time, the officer's name, what you were asked and what you said. If the letter later says something different, your notes are your record.

How to describe a concern clearly

This is where calls go wrong, in both directions. Some parents pour out the whole history of the relationship. Others play everything down because they are scared of making things worse. Neither helps your child. The officer needs facts they can check and weigh.

A clear concern has four parts: what happened, when, how your child was affected, and what you did about it. For example: "On 3 August he returned our son two hours late and our son had not had his inhaler since the morning. I messaged that evening to ask that the inhaler goes in his bag at every handover." That is calm, specific and about your child.

And if you have no safety concerns, say that clearly too. "I have no concerns about her safety with his dad. Our disagreement is about the school week." A plain "no concerns" is useful information, and it often means the case can move straight to helping you both agree.

If there has been domestic abuse

If you have experienced domestic abuse, the safeguarding call is the right place to say so, calmly and with dates, even if you have never told anyone official before. A few things matter:

• Only talk when it is safe. If the other person is nearby, or could see your phone, say "this is not a good time" and ask for a call back. You do not need to explain.
• Check your forms. Concerns about abuse belong in form C1A. If you have not completed one and need to, tell the officer and ask the court how to file it.
• Ask for what you need at court. A separate waiting room, separate arrival times, a screen or attending by video. Ask early.
• The officer can do more. If risks are identified, the parties may be invited to meet the officer separately (paragraph 13.4). If the officer suspects a child is at risk of harm, they must carry out a risk assessment for the court (paragraph 13.8), and Cafcass says concerns about a child's safety are also referred to the local authority.

If you are frightened for your safety or your child's safety right now, call 999. For helplines and safety planning, read our Keeping You Safe page.

The safeguarding letter: what it says and who sees it

After the checks and the calls, Cafcass sends the court a safeguarding letter. According to Cafcass, it usually sets out:

1. The current arrangements for your child.
2. What was discussed in the telephone interviews with both parties.
3. The results of the police and local authority checks.
4. The officer's analysis and advice about any welfare concerns, harm or risk of harm.
5. What the court might consider next: for example, no further role for Cafcass because you now agree, a section 7 report where an unresolved disagreement may affect your child's welfare, or listing the case for a final hearing without further assessment.

The court must tell the parties what the letter says, unless doing so would create a risk of harm to a party or the child (paragraph 14.13). If you have not seen it by the day, you can politely ask the court at the start of the hearing what it says. If the checks are not back in time, the court should generally adjourn, and should not make interim orders without them unless it is to protect a child's safety.

Remember who decides. The letter is advice. The judge or magistrates make the decisions, after hearing from both of you.

What if you disagree with the safeguarding letter?

Take a breath first. It is very common to read a letter and feel it has missed the point. Separate two different things:

In practice, that means a short, calm note for yourself, or a position statement if the court has asked for one: the point you disagree with, why, and what you propose instead. Then say it at the hearing in two or three sentences. Never attack the officer. They see many families, and a respectful "I see it differently, and here is why" carries far more weight than frustration.

If you miss the call, or it never comes

• Missed it? Ring back promptly using the number left, or the contact details on your Cafcass letter. Leave a short message with good times to reach you.
• Hearing close and still no call? Do not panic. Cafcass says that if the telephone interview has not happened by the first hearing, the officer at court will discuss any outstanding safeguarding issues, make an assessment and advise the court. Arrive early so there is time to speak to them.
• Checks not back? The court may adjourn the hearing to a new date. Frustrating, but it is there to keep children safe.

Common Cafcass call mistakes

1. Letting unknown numbers ring out in the fortnight before the hearing.
2. Taking the call where your child, your ex or your colleagues can hear.
3. Telling the story of the relationship instead of describing your child's safety.
4. Raising a serious concern for the first time with no dates or detail.
5. Playing down a real worry because you are scared of making things worse.
6. Saying something on the phone that does not match your forms.
7. Not writing notes, then having nothing to check the letter against.

If you are representing yourself and would like someone in your corner before and at the hearing, read what a McKenzie Friend can and can't do. If you are at the very start, because contact has stopped, begin with what to do in the first weeks.