Children Act 2004

The Children Act 2004 is now fully in force & introduced a number of initiatives including the Children's Commissioner, the ContactPoint Information Database, the Safeguarding Children's Boards & the Children & Young People's Plan. Nick Armstrong & Eleanor Wright have written a helpful commentary on the only reported case on the Act so far - Re LH & MH . For an overview of the main provisions of the Act see the guide on 4 Brick Court's website .

Queen's Speech: Children & Young Person's Bill

The Government has announced its plans to introduce new legislation dealing with services for vulnerable children & children in care following on from the Care Matters consultation & Green & White Papers. The main elements of the Children & Young Persons Bill will consist of provisions:

• Giving pilot local authorities the power to test a different model of organising social care by commissioning services from ‘Social Work Practices’ and enabling regulation of these practices;
• Increasing the focus on the transparency and quality of care planning and ensuring that the child’s voice is heard when important decisions that affect their future are taken;
• Increasing schools’ capacity to address the needs of children in care, including placing the role of the designated teacher on a statutory footing and ensuring that children in care do not move schools in Year 10 and 11 except in exceptional circumstances;
• Ensuring that young people are not forced out of care before they are ready, by giving them a greater say over moves to independent living and ensuring they retain support and guidance as long as they need it; and
• Improving the quality and stability of placements for children in care, securing higher placement standards, ensuring that children in care and custody are visited regularly.

All sounds very laudible. No further information available as yet as to that old devil the detail.