Children Act 1989

105 Interpretation. E+W+S

(1) In this Act—

• “adoption agency” means a body which may be referred to as an adoption agency by virtue of section 1 of the M1 Adoption Act 1976;

• “bank holiday” means a day which is a bank holiday under the M2 Banking and Financial Dealings Act 1971;

• “care order” has the meaning given by section 31(11) and also includes any order which by or under any enactment has the effect of, or is deemed to be, a care order for the purposes of this Act; and any reference to a child who is in the care of an authority is a reference to a child who is in their care by virtue of a care order;

• “child” means, subject to paragraph 16 of Schedule 1, a person under the age of eighteen;

• “child assessment order” has the meaning given by section 43(2);

• “child minder” has the meaning given by section 71;

• “child of the family”, in relation to the parties to a marriage, means—

(a) a child of both of those parties;

(b) any other child, not being a child who is placed with those parties as foster parents by a local authority or voluntary organisation, who has been treated by both of those parties as a child of their family;

• “children’s home” has the same meaning as in section 63;

• “community home” has the meaning given by section 53;

• “contact order” has the meaning given by section 8(1);

• “day care” has the same meaning as in section 18;

• “disabled”, in relation to a child, has the same meaning as in section 17(11);

• F1 . . .

• “domestic premises” has the meaning given by section 71(12);

• “education supervision order” has the meaning given in section 36;

• “emergency protection order” means an order under section 44;

• “family assistance order” has the meaning given in section 16(2);

• “family proceedings” has the meaning given by section 8(3);

• “functions” includes powers and duties;

• “guardian of a child” means a guardian (other than a guardian of the estate of a child) appointed in accordance with the provisions of section 5;

• “harm” has the same meaning as in section 31(9) and the question of whether harm is significant shall be determined in accordance with section 31(10);

• [F2 “Health Authority” means a Health Authority established under section 8 of the M3 National Health Service Act 1977;]

• “health service hospital” has the same meaning as in the M4 National Health Service Act 1977;

• “hospital” has the same meaning as in the M5 Mental Health Act 1983, except that it does not include a special hospital within the meaning of that Act;

• “ill-treatment” has the same meaning as in section 31(9);

• [F3 “income-based jobseeker’s allowance” has the same meaning as in the Jobseekers Act 1995;]

• “independent school” has the same meaning as in [F4 the Education Act 1996];

• “local authority” means, in relation to England F5 . . ., the council of a county, a metropolitan district, a London Borough or the Common Council of the City of London [F6 in relation to Wales, the council of a county or a county borough] and, in relation toScotland, a local authority within the meaning of section 1(2) of the M6 Social Work (Scotland) Act 1968;

• “local authority foster parent” has the same meaning as in section 23(3);

• “local education authority” has the same meaning as in [F4 the Education Act 1996];

• “local housing authority” has the same meaning as in the M7 Housing Act 1985;

• “mental nursing home” has the same meaning as in the M8 Registered Homes Act 1984;

• “nursing home” has the same meaning as in the Act of 1984;

• “parental responsibility” has the meaning given in section 3;

• “parental responsibility agreement” has the meaning given in section 4(1);

• “prescribed” means prescribed by regulations made under this Act;

• “privately fostered child” and “to foster a child privately” have the same meaning as in section 66;

• “prohibited steps order” has the meaning given by section 8(1);

• “protected child” has the same meaning as in Part III of the M9 Adoption Act 1976;

• “registered children’s home” has the same meaning as in section 63;

• “registered pupil” has the same meaning as in [F4 the Education Act 1996];

• “relative”, in relation to a child, means a grandparent, brother, sister, uncle or aunt (whether of the full blood or half blood or by affinity) or step-parent;

• “residence order” has the meaning given by section 8(1);

• “residential care home” has the same meaning as in the Registered Homes Act 1984 [F7 and “small home” has the meaning given by section 1(4A) of that Act];

• “responsible person”, in relation to a child who is the subject of a supervision order, has the meaning given in paragraph 1 of Schedule 3;

• “school” has the same meaning as in [F4 the Education Act 1996] or, in relation to Scotland, in the M10 Education (Scotland) Act 1980;

• “service”, in relation to any provision made under Part III, includes any facility;

• “signed”, in relation to any person, includes the making by that person of his mark;

• “special educational needs” has the same meaning as in [F8 the Education Act 1996];

• [F9 “Special Health Authority” means a Special Health Authority established under section 11 of the National Health Service Act 1977;]

• “specific issue order” has the meaning given by section 8(1);

• “supervision order” has the meaning given by section 31(11);

• “supervised child” and “supervisor”, in relation to a supervision order or an education supervision order, mean respectively the child who is (or is to be) under supervision and the person under whose supervision he is (or is to be) by virtue of the order;

• “upbringing”, in relation to any child, includes the care of the child but not his maintenance;

• “voluntary home” has the meaning given by section 60;

• “voluntary organisation” means a body (other than a public or local authority) whose activities are not carried on for profit.

(2) References in this Act to a child whose father and mother were, or (as the case may be) were not, married to each other at the time of his birth must be read with section 1 of the M11 Family Law Reform Act 1987 (which extends the meaning of such references).

(3) References in this Act to—

(a) a person with whom a child lives, or is to live, as the result of a residence order; or

(b) a person in whose favour a residence order is in force,

shall be construed as references to the person named in the order as the person with whom the child is to live.

(4) References in this Act to a child who is looked after by a local authority have the same meaning as they have (by virtue of section 22) in Part III.

(5) References in this Act to accommodation provided by or on behalf of a local authority are references to accommodation so provided in the exercise of functions which stand referred to the social services committee of that or any other local authority under the M12 Local Authority Social Services Act 1970.

(6) In determining the “ordinary residence” of a child for any purpose of this Act, there shall be disregarded any period in which he lives in any place—

(a) which is a school or other institution;

(b) in accordance with the requirements of a supervision order under this Act or an order under section 7(7)(b) of the M13 Children and Young Persons Act 1969; or

(c) while he is being provided with accommodation by or on behalf of a local authority.

(7) References in this Act to children who are in need shall be construed in accordance with section 17.

(8) Any notice or other document required under this Act to be served on any person may be served on him by being delivered personally to him, or being sent by post to him in a registered letter or by the recorded delivery service at his proper address.

(9) Any such notice or other document required to be served on a body corporate or a firm shall be duly served if it is served on the secretary or clerk of that body or a partner of that firm.

(10) For the purposes of this section, and of section 7 of the M14 Interpretation Act 1978 in its application to this section, the proper address of a person—

(a) in the case of a secretary or clerk of a body corporate, shall be that of the registered or principal office of that body;

(b) in the case of a partner of a firm, shall be that of the principal office of the firm; and

(c) in any other case, shall be the last known address of the person to be served.

Textual Amendments

F1 Definition of "district health authority" in s. 105(1) repealed (1.4.1996) by 1995 c. 17, ss.2(1), 5(1)(2), Schs. 1, para. 118(10)(a), 3 (with Sch. 2 paras. 6, 16)

F2 Definition of "health authority" in s. 105(1) substituted (1.4.1996) by 1995 c. 17, s. 2(1)(3), Sch. 1 Pt. III, para. 118(10)(b) (with Sch. 2 para. 6)

F3 Definition of "income-based jobseeker's allowance" in s. 105 inserted (7.10.1996) by 1995 c. 18, s. 41(4), Sch. 2 para. 19(4); S.I. 1996/2208, art. 2(b)

F4 Words in s. 105(1) substituted (1.11.1996) by 1996 c. 56, ss. 582(1), 583(2), Sch. 37, Pt. I para.91(with Sch. 39, paras. 30, 39)

F5 Words in s. 105(1) repealed(1.4.1996) by 1994 c. 19, ss. 22(4), s. 66(8), Sch. 10 para. 13, Sch. 18 (with s. 66(7), Sch. 17 paras. 22, 23(2)); S.I. 1996/396, art. 4, Sch. 2

F6 Words in definition of “local authority" in s. 105(1) inserted (1.4.1996) by 1994 c. 19, s. 22(4), Sch. 10 para. 13 (with s. 66(7), Sch. 17 paras. 22, 23(2)); S.I. 1996/396, art. 4, Sch. 2.

F7 Words in s. 105(1) inserted (1.4.1993) by Registered Homes Act 1991 (c. 20, SIF 113:3), s. 2(6); S.I. 1992/2240, art. 2.

F8 Words in s. 105(1) substituted (1.11.1996) by 1996 c. 56, ss. 582(1), 583(2), Sch. 37 Pt. I, para.91(with Sch. 39, paras. 30, 39)

F9 Definition of "special health authority" in s. 105(1) substituted (1.4.1996) by 1995 c. 17, s. 2(1)(3), Sch. 1 Pt. III, para. 118(10)(c)(with Sch. 2 para. 6)

Commencement Information

I1 S. 105 wholly in force at 14.10.1991 see s. 108(2)(3) and S.I. 1991/828, art. 3(2)

Marginal Citations

M1 1976 c. 36.

M2 1971 c. 80.

M3 1977 c.49.

M4 1977 c. 49.

M5 1983 c. 20.

M6 1968 c. 49.

M7 1985 c. 68.

M8 1984 c. 23.

M9 1976 c. 36.

M10 1980 c. 44.

M11 1987 c. 42.

M12 1970 c. 42.

M13 1969 c. 54.

M14 1978 c. 30.