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This chapter
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Private Sector: Childcare/Health Care/Education
All health professionals who work in private health care, or deliver health care in a private setting, must be aware of their duties to protect children and should know about the CPC child protection procedures of the Health Board in whose district they are based.
Professionals who see children and their families on a private basis must follow the appropriate child protection procedure if they know or suspect that a child is suffering or is at risk of significant harm. The lead commissioner at the Health Board should make themselves known to the nurse in charge of local private health care facilities where children may be cared for.
Health commissioners have a public health responsibility to consider the protection of children in private residential homes and boarding schools.
Statutory Responsibilities of Social Workers
The local authority social work services have statutory duties to protect children. When the local authority receives information which suggests that a child may be in need of compulsory measures of supervision, the social work service will make inquiries and give the Reporter any information which they have been able to discover about the child. Local authorities have a duty to safeguard and promote the welfare of children in need in their area and, so far as is consistent with that duty, promote the upbringing of children by their families, by providing a range and level of services appropriate to the children's needs. Some children who have experienced abuse or neglect will need continuing support from the local authority, including specialist services and counselling. Some may need to be looked after by the local authority. Local authorities' criminal justice services also have responsibilities for the supervision and management of risk from adults who have committed offences against children.
Statutory Responsibilities of the Police
The police have a general duty to protect the public and to investigate on behalf of the Procurator Fiscal, where they believe that a criminal offence may have been committed. They will give the Procurator Fiscal any information which will assist him or her to decide whether a criminal prosecution should take place. The police shall refer a child to the Children's Reporter if they believe that a child may be in need of compulsory measures of supervision.
Statutory Responsibilities of the Children's Reporter
The Children's Hearings system is Scotland's distinctive way of administering care and justice for children and young people up to the age of 16 (or in some cases 18). The legal framework is sections 52 and 53 of the Children (Scotland) Act 1995, under which any child in respect of whom specified grounds exist may be referred to the Children's Reporter by any agency or individual to whom it appears that the child may be in need of compulsory measures of supervision.
On receipt of information from any source about a case which may require a Children's Hearing to be arranged, the Children's Reporter makes an initial investigation. The Children's Reporter may ask for information from other agencies, or arrange for the local authority social work service to undertake an assessment or prepare a social background report. In order to identify ways of reducing delays in Hearings cases, a blueprint was developed by the Time Intervals Working Group which recommended the introduction of national standards covering timescales and other aspects of the service being delivered to children and families (Scottish Office 1999). Following this investigation and where it appears to the Children's Reporter that a child may be in need of compulsory measures of supervision he or she will arrange a Hearing.
The Children's Reporter prepares the grounds for referral and the formal statement of the reason for bringing the child to a Children's Hearing. If the grounds for referral are disputed by the child or parents, the Children's Reporter will refer the case to a Sheriff in Chambers to determine whether or not the grounds are established.
If the Children's Reporter decides that a Hearing to decide what should happen does not require to be arranged, he or she will inform the child and any other relevant person, including the person who provided the original information. When a Hearing is not arranged, the Children's Reporter may also, if appropriate, refer the case to the local authority so that the child and his or her family can be offered advice and guidance on a voluntary basis.
Statutory Role of Procurator Fiscal
The Procurator Fiscal, as the Lord Advocate's local representative, has a duty to investigate the circumstances of any crime or suspected crime brought to his or her attention. He or she acts in the public interest and decides whether to bring criminal proceedings. Where proceedings have started, the Procurator Fiscal may precognosce (interview) witnesses. Child protection encompasses effective investigation and prosecution of offences against children. Decisions regarding criminal proceedings against adults or children are taken by the Procurator Fiscal in the public interest, which includes, but is not restricted to, the interests of the child as witness or accused. The gravity of the alleged offences and protection of the public are matters which require to be weighed, but in all actions concerning children the Procurator Fiscal will have regard to Article 3 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child which provides that the best interest of the child shall be a primary consideration.