In this section:
The Children Act 2004
The Children Bill received Royal Assent on 15 November and is now the Children Act 2004. The Act provides a legislative spine for the wider strategy for improving children's lives. This covers the universal services which every child accesses, and more targeted services for those with additional needs.
The overall aim is to encourage integrated planning, commissioning and delivery of services as well as improve multi-disciplinary working, remove duplication, increase accountability and improve the coordination of individual and joint inspections in local authorities. The legislation is enabling rather than prescriptive and provides local authorities with a considerable amount of flexibility in the way they implement its provisions.
Details about the implementation of the Act and the wider reform programme are available in Every Child Matters: Change for Children.
The Children Act 2004 places a new duty on local authorities to promote the educational achievement of looked after children. For consultation on the statutory guidance accompanying the duty please go to http://www.dfes.gov.uk/consultations/.
[top]
The Children Act 1989
The Children Act 1989 covers the following:
- reforms the law relating to children;
- makes provision for local authority services for children in need and others;
- amends the law with respect to children's homes, community home, voluntary homes and voluntary organisations;
- makes provision with respect to fostering, child minding and day care for young children and adoption, and for connected purposes.
[top]
The Children Act Report 2004-05
The Children Act 1998 Report 2004 and 2005 describes a period of intense activity, as the Government and its partners worked hard to make a reality of the vision for children’s services set out in Every Child Matters: Change for Children (December 2004) and the Children Act 2004 .
Following the example of previous reports, it is based on the Government Objectives for Children’s Social Services and provides information drawn from statistical collections and research. To help set the data in context, each chapter refers to relevant policy developments and publications.
[top]
The Children Act Report 2003
The Children Act Report 2003 was published in December 2004. Its publication is a statutory requirement flowing from the Children Act 1989 (s83(6)). The report draws together information drawn from research, statistics and inspection findings and consolidated together.
[top]
The Children Act Report 2002
The Children Act 2002 is a report by the Secretary of State for Education and Skills and the Lord Chancellor, on the Children Act 1989, in pursuance of their duties under section 83(6) of the Act, presented to Parliament, July 2003.
This report pulls together the latest information from statistical returns, inspections and research into a single concise document. It tells the story of the vitally important work of councils in safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people. It shows that progress is being made in a number of areas, but there is still much to be done to achieve our objectives for vulnerable children.
[top]
Related links
Acts
Reports
