Children taken away from parents due to misreporting of drug tests, say experts

Process for interpreting hair-strand tests can be misleading and carries a risk of racial bias, according to campaigners in England and Wales

Children are at risk of being wrongly removed from their parents' care by the family courts because drug tests are being misinterpreted, experts have warned.

Life-changing decisions about whether a child should be placed in the care of a local authority can sometimes hinge on the outcome of hair-strand tests, designed to show whether a parent has consumed drugs or excessive alcohol.