Plain Guide to the Children Act 2004 - Softcover

One of the recurrent problems in offering integrated services to children has been in establishing a common understanding between all the professional groups involved with children. Similarly, I am only too aware of the difficulty for lay people in understanding legislation that is both very complex and inaccessible to the normal reader. So, I am very pleased to introduce this plain guide to the Children Act 2004, which has succeeded in bringing together, in one place, the context that led to the Children Act, the legislation itself and a parallel commentary on the legislation - in plain language. It is obviously the letter of the law that is tested in court and the interpretation in this volume makes no claim to pre-judge the court's interpretation of every detail of the Children Act. However, as a plain guide for the wide range of professionals and others working to secure the very best for all of our children, I am confident that it will help to promote a wide understanding of the spirit of the legislation. Baroness Helena Kennedy, QC

The book contains the full text of the Act and Schedules, with a plain language explanation of what each section of the Act means, with particular reference to the key groups affected by the legislation.