The Intercountry Adoption (Hague Convention) (Scotland) Regulations 2003

Decision and notification

24.—(1) The local authority shall make a decision on the matter referred to the adoption panel within 14 days after the date of recommendation by the adoption panel and shall do so only after taking into account the recommendation of the adoption panel.

(2) No member of an adoption panel shall take part in any decision made by the local authority under paragraph (1).

(3) The local authority shall, within 7 days of making its decision, notify the Central Authority of–

(a) the name and age of the child;

(b) the reasons why they consider that the child may be suitable for adoption by a person habitually resident in a Convention country outside the British Islands;

(c) the date on which the freeing order under section 18 of the Adoption Act 1976, section 18 of the 1978 Act or Article 17 (1) or 18 (1) of the Adoption (Northern Ireland) Order 1987 was made; and

(d) any other information that Authority may require.

(4) The Central Authority shall maintain a list of children who are notified to it under paragraph (3).

(5) The Central Authority shall make the contents of the Convention list available for inspection by the other central authorities within the British Islands on request.

(6) In the event that a local authority either completes an alternative placement for a child who is the subject of a notification in terms of paragraph (3) or otherwise determines that adoption by a person habitually resident in a Convention Country outside the British Islands is no longer in the best interests of such a child, that local authority shall notify the Central Authority of that fact and the Central Authority shall amend the Convention list accordingly.

(7) Subject to paragraph (8), within 7 days of the decision under paragraph (1), the local authority shall notify in writing the parents of the child including, where the local authority considers this to be in the child’s best interests, the father or mother of the child who is a parent in terms of section 15 (1) of the Children (Scotland) Act 1995 but who does not have parental responsibilities, or the guardian of the child if their whereabouts are known to the local authority, that the child has been approved in principle for adoption in a Convention country outside the British Islands.

(8) No notification shall be given in terms of paragraph (7) to a person who has made a declaration under section 18 (6) or 19 (4) of the 1978 Act (declaration as to no further involvement with the child) and has not withdrawn that declaration under section 19 of the 1978 Act.

(9) In this regulation and in regulation 25 “Convention list” means–

(a) in relation to the Central Authority, a list of children notified to that authority in accordance with paragraph (3); or

(b) in relation to any other central authority within the British Islands, a list of children notified to that Authority in accordance with provisions which correspond to paragraph (3).