AI for Good: Transforming Communication for Better Child and Family Support

CAFCASS (Children and Family Court Advisory Support Service) has launched an innovative AI solution called "Scribe" to revolutionise how FCAs communicate with children involved in family court proceedings.

The Challenge

CAFCASS works with over 140,000 children annually through 1,500 Family Court Advisors (FCAs). A significant challenge has been the time-intensive process of writing personalised letters to children of different ages, reading abilities, and language backgrounds. FCAs currently spend 30-40 minutes crafting each letter, with some taking up to an hour. And at the moment this adds up to 80,000 letters each month.

The Solution: Scribe

Developed in partnership with Version 1, Scribe is an AI-powered tool that helps draft child-friendly letters based on case information; helping FCAs to explain formal court documents in clear, accessible, and personalised writing. Key features include:

• Age-appropriate language: Automatically adjusts content for different reading ages
• Personalisation: Incorporates children's interests (like horses or robots) into explanations
• Multi-language support: Provides translations to ensure accessibility
• Tone adjustment: Options for neutral, enthusiastic, empathetic, or fun approaches
• Audio generation: Creates audio versions for children with literacy challenges

How It Works

Family Court Advisors select from over 100 letter templates within CAFCASS's case management system. FCAs can choose from a range of parameters to customise the letters such as a child's details, interests, preferred reading age, and preferred language. The programme then generates a personalised draft that workers can edit before sending. For example, a formal paragraph about court processes might be rewritten as: "If you love robots, imagine this like a special robot mission..."

See Scribe in action and learn more about it in this short video:

Safeguards and Human Oversight

CAFCASS emphasises that AI doesn't replace FCAs' expertise but augments their capabilities. The system includes:

• Mandatory human review before any letter is sent
• Flesh-Kincaid scoring to verify reading age appropriateness
• Training for staff on AI limitations and proper usage

Early Results and Future Plans

Scribe has recently gone live, after a very successful pilot that demonstrated significant time savings. The tool has received positive feedback from CAFCASS's Family Justice Young People's Board.

Helen Abbotts, Business Engagement Leader at CAFCASS, noted: "We're not asking AI to write to children. We have the skills, we have Family Court Advisors who can write to children. But actually, if you've got a 2-year-old, a 7-year-old and a 12-year-old, you need to write to them all about the same things but amend the language and personalise it with what we know about each child."

The Broader Impact

This initiative represents a responsible approach to AI implementation in public services, focusing on real-world impact rather than technology for its own sake. The tool addresses a genuine need while maintaining the human connection that's crucial in child welfare work.