Children First and Our Duty to Care

ChildrenFirst and Our Duty to Care

The Children First Act 2015 (the Act), puts elements of the Children First:  National Guidance for the Protection and Welfare of Children (2011) on a statutory footing CF Act 2015.  The legislations were a key Programme for Government commitment, and forms part of a suite of child protection legislation which includes the National Vetting Bureau (Children and Vulnerable Persons) Act, 2012 and the Criminal Justices (Withholding of Information on Offences against Children and Vulnerable Persons) Act 2012

The Act provides for a number of key child protection measures, as follows:

Ø  A requirement on organizations providing services to children to keep children safe and to produce a Child Safeguarding Statement;

Ø  A requirement on defined categories of persons (mandated persons) to report child protection concerns over a defined threshold to the Child and Family Agency (the Agency);

Ø  A requirement on mandated persons to assist the Agency in the assessment of a child protection risk, if so requested to do so by the Agency;

Ø  Putting the Children First Interdepartmental Implementation Group on a statutory footing.

 Source: Child Health and Well-Being by Niamh Gaine

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