children act

The Children Act 1989

The children act 1989 is British act of parliament that altered the law in regarded to children. In particular, it introduced the notion of parental responsibility. The Act covers children and young people under the age of 18.

Key principles of the Act:

The paramouncy principle, which protects children who are at risk.
Wherever possible, children should be bought up and cared for within their own families
Children in need and parents should be supported in the upbringing of their child
Children should be kept safe to be protected by effective interventions, if they are in danger
Courts should ensure that delays are avoided and should only make on order if to do so is better then making no order at all
Children should be kept informed about what happens to them and should participate in decision- making, where it concerns the future
Parents will continue to have parental responsibilities for their children, even when they do not live with them. They should be kept informed about their children and participate in decisions made about the future.

The physical, emotional and educational needs of the child must be considered when a child protection case is being discussed. Decisions have to be reached as to weather the parents have the ability to meet these needs when caring for the child.

The services provided under the children act 1989 can include:

Social work
Help with housing and support
Equipment and adaptations
Occupational therapists or other specialists
Short-term breaks
Counselling
Interpreters
An advocate or representative for individuals or families.

The main purpose of child protection are to keep a child safe and secure, protecting the chid from harm.

The local authorities have a statutory duty to investigate any reported cases of child abuse to protect the child from harm. Abuse can be in a form of verbal, sexual ...

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The services provided under the children act 1989 can include:

Social work
Help with housing and support
Equipment and adaptations
Occupational therapists or other specialists
Short-term breaks
Counselling
Interpreters
An advocate or representative for individuals or families.

The main purpose of child protection are to keep a child safe and secure, protecting the chid from harm.

The local authorities have a statutory duty to investigate any reported cases of child abuse to protect the child from harm. Abuse can be in a form of verbal, sexual or physical punishment or emotional torture. When the child protection conference is convened a decision may be made to place the child being discussed on the child protection register.

Children are defined as being in need if they are:

Unlikely to achieve, or maintain, or have the opportunity of maintaining a reasonable standard of health for development without the provision of local authority services. Health includes physical or mental health; development includes; physical, social, emotional, intellectual, or behavioural development
Their health for development is likely to be significantly impaired, or further impaired without the provision of such services
The child is disabled. Disabled includes the blind, deaf or suffering from mental disorder, or handicapped by illness, injury or congenital deformity or other disability as may be prescribed.

‘The paramouncy principle’

The welfare of the child is the paramount consideration when decisions are made by the courts or other in relation to the upbringing of the child. So this means that the parent’s wishes can be overridden if these are considered not to be in the best interest of the child. Although the concept of welfare is not defined in the children act, there are a number of factors which taken into consideration when the courts are making decisions. (Sometimes known as the ‘welfare checklist)

As a result of the act, children are protected from harm through the ‘paramouncy’ principle.

The welfare checklist

The wishes or feelings of the child shall be ascertained in the light of his or her age and understanding
The physical, emotional and education needs of the child shall be considered
The likely effect of any change in the child’s circumstances should be determined
The age, sex, background in any other characteristics the court considers to be relevant, should be considered
Consideration should be given to any harm which the child has suffered, or is at risk of suffering
The capability of the child’s parents in meeting the child’s needs should be taken into consideration
The available powers of the court to take action should be determined

Strengths of the children act 1989

Children are able to express their preferences and views and these have to be ‘listened to’
The local authority must work in partnership with parents
Parents have ‘responsibilities’ which they must accept
Children have ‘rights’. People who are dealing with children cannot just ‘do things to them’ without their consent or with out listening to their opinions.
Details are provided about circumstances under which children can be ‘taken in to care’ but it is clear that such action should only be taken as a last resort

Weaknesses of the children act 1989

There is little accountability of social care workers involved in cases. In other words social workers are not held to account by others outside their department.
Children under the age of 10 are not considered to be old enough to be held accountable for example for committing a criminal offence.
Court cases that involve child protection are heard privately so there can be no public scrutiny of procedures
Young offenders are not offered the same protection as other children under the children act 1989.

There are several ways in which help can be provided in emergency situations. These can include: