Safeguarding the Welfare of Children

5447 Words22 Pages
Safe-guarding the welfare of children and young people. 1.1 Procedures and policies for safe-guarding and child protection in settings for young people and children in England and Wales are the result of parliament passing legislation. I have listed below some legislation that has been passed in England to protect and safe-guard our children and young people. The Children’s Act 1989 [England and Wales] This Act allocated duties to local authorities, parents, courts and other agencies in the United Kingdom, to ensure all children are safe-guarded and their welfare is promoted. The idea behind it is that children are best cared for within their own families. However, if this is not possible the Act makes provisions for times when parents and families do not cooperate with statutory bodies. The Education Act 2002 This Act sets out the responsibilities of Local Education Authority [LEAs], governing bodies, head teachers and all others working in schools to ensure that children and young people are safe and free from harm. The aim of this Act is to place the education services for making child protection arrangements on a statutory footing and to further safe-guard against child abuse in any form. These bodies now have a duty to safe-guard and promote the welfare of children in relation to all functions relating to the conduct of a school. Children’s Act 2004 The death of Victoria Climbié at the hands of the people who were supposed to be caring for her resulted in an independent inquiry lead by Lord Laming in 2003. The report led to the Green Paper: Every child matters, which then led onto the Children’s Act 2004 in England and similar Bills and Acts in all four countries in the United Kingdom. The Act includes: Earlier support for families experiencing difficulties. The introduction of local authorities children’s directors with overall responsibility for
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