Notification of Births (Extension) Act 1915

1 Extension of Notification of Births Act, 1907.

(1) The [7 Edw. 7. c. 40.] Notification of Births Act, 1907 (in this Act referred to as the principal Act), shall, on and after the first day of September, nineteen hundred and fifteen, extend to and take effect in every area in which it is not already in force, and in the case of an area for which it could be adopted either by the council of an urban or rural district, or by the county council, shall take effect as if it had been adopted by the council of the district.

(2) Where by virtue of this Act the principal Act comes into force in any county district in which it is not already in force, the medical officer of health shall send duplicates of any notices of birth received by him under that Act to the county medical officer of health as soon as may be after they are received.

(3) Where by virtue of this Act the principal Act comes into force in any area in which it is not already in force, it shall be the duty of the local authority to bring the provisions of the principal Act to the attention of all medical practitioners and midwives practising in the area.

2 Arrangements for attending to mothers and young children.

(1) Any local authority within the meaning of the principal Act (whether a sanitary authority or not) may, for the purpose of the care of expectant mothers, nursing mothers, and young children, exercise any powers which a sanitary authority has under the Public Health Acts, 1875 to 1907, or the [54 & 55 Vict. c. 76.] Public Health (London) Act, 1891, as the case requires.

(2) Any expenses incurred in the exercise of these powers shall be defrayed in the same manner as expenses of the local authority are defrayed under the principal Act.

Any such powers may be exercised in such manner as the authority direct by a committee or committees which shall include women and may comprise, if it is thought fit, persons who are not members of the authority. Any such committee may be empowered by the authority by which it is appointed to incur expenses up to a limit for the time being fixed by the authority, and, if so empowered, shall report any expenditure by them to the authority in such manner and at such times as the authority may direct. A committee appointed for the purposes of this section shall hold office for such period not exceeding three years as the authority by which it is appointed may determine.

3 Application to Scotland and Ireland.

(1) In the application of this Act to Scotland—

(a) subsection (2) of section one shall not apply : Provided that the Local Government Board for Scotland may, if they think fit, by order, authorise any two or more local authorities to act together for the purposes of the principal Act and this Act, and may prescribe the mode of such joint action and of defraying the costs thereof ;

(b) the following subsection shall be substituted for subsection (1) of section two :—

(1) Any local authority within the meaning of the principal Act may make such arrangements as they think fit, and as may be sanctioned by the Local Government Board for Scotland, for attending to the health of expectant mothers and nursing mothers, and of children under five years of age within the meaning of section seven of the [8 Edw. 7. c. 63.] Education (Scotland) Act, 1908 ;

(2) In the application of this Act to Ireland—

(a) subsection (2) of section one shall not apply ;

(b) the following subsection shall be substituted for subsection (1) of section two :—

(1) Any local authority within the meaning of the principal Act may make such arrangements as they think fit, and as may be sanctioned by the Local Government Board for Ireland, for attending to the health of expectant mothers and nursing mothers, and of children under five years of age;

(c) the provisions for the extension of the principal Act shall not apply as respects any rural district; and

(d) the expression " medical officer of health " means, for the purposes both of this Act and the principal Act, as respects any district for which there is a medical superintendent officer of health that officer, and elsewhere the medical officer of health of the dispensary district.

4 Short title and repeal.

(1) This Act may be cited as the Notification of Births (Extension) Act, 1915, and the principal Act and this Act may be cited together as the Notification of Births Acts, 1907 and 1915.

(2) The enactments mentioned in the Schedule to this Act are hereby repealed (except as respects rural districts in Ireland) to the extent specified in the third column of that Schedule.