To ask the Secretary of State for Justice what the average fee charged to local authorities on receipt of an application for care proceedings to the courts is. (248903)

The fee to issue an application under section 31 of the Children Act 1989 is fixed at £2,225. Two additional fees may be charged at a later stage of the process if the stages are required. A full list of fees for family proceedings is set out in the Family Proceedings Fees Order 2008, this order came into force on 1 May 2008.