Summary of the Children and Families Act 2014

The Children and Families Act 2014 was established to give children and their families greater support and protection under UK law. It combined many previous elements of legislation in one place, with a focus on adoption, special educational needs and child welfare. In this article, we will outline everything you need to know about the Children and Families Act 2014 and summarise each of its key parts.

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What is the Children and Families Act 2014?

The Children and Families Act 2014 is a combination of previous child welfare legislation and guidance – along with a number of important updates – that aims to improve the way services are received by vulnerable children, young people and their families.

Under the Act, universal services such as healthcare, social care and education are required to work together more closely to ensure children, parents and families receive the support they need at the right time.

Alongside other key safeguarding children legislation, the Act gives specific protection to more vulnerable children, such as those in foster care, those being adopted and children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).

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The Parts of the Children and Families Act 2014

There are nine key parts of the Children and Families Act 2014. Below is a summary of each part:

Part 1: Adoption

The first part of the Act is designed to make adoptions easier with the child’s welfare at the centre of all actions taken. Key points are:

• Children can move in with their adoptive families sooner.
• The ‘foster to adopt’ principle means that people who are already approved to foster can take the child into their home whilst waiting for the legal adoption process to go through.
• The process for prospective parents to find the right child for them to adopt is easier.
• Potential adoptive parents can access the adoption register, allowing them to search the database themselves and remove delays.
• There no longer needs to be any sort of ‘ethnic match’ between potential adopters and their adopted children.
• Families have more choice over who helps them after the adoption with a ‘personal budget’ for support.
• The contact that adopted children have with their birth families after they’ve been taken into care or adopted shouldn’t cause the child any problems.

Part 2: Family Justice

The second part of the Children and Families Act is designed to make court processes more effective, quicker and better in regards to child welfare. Key points are:

• The time it takes the family court to decide a child’s future is shortened.
• The court will always consider the welfare of the child first and ensure parents do what is right for the child, not what they want themselves.
• If the parents split up, they will be supported to sort things out and stay involved with their children’s lives without needing to involve the court.
• Child Arrangement Orders can be issued by the court to regulate a child’s living arrangements and how they spend time with others.

Part 3: Children and Young People in England with Special Educational Needs or Disabilities (SEND)

This part of the Act is designed to give parents more control over the welfare of their children with special educational needs or disabilities. Key points are:

• Parents, children and young people will be told what they need to know about their child’s SEND and how they can access help and support.
• Organisations and services must work together to help children with SEND and should involve families in discussions and decisions relating to their care and education.
• Children with SEND and their families have more say about the type of help they receive.
• Children with SEND will receive one assessment to determine their needs and one support plan that runs from birth to age 25, known as an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHC).

Part 4: Childcare

This part of the Act is designed to increase the provision and quality of childcare outside of school across the UK. Key points are:

• More people are able to establish, register and train as childminders.
• Individual childminders no longer have to register with, or be inspected by, Ofsted.
• Schools and other providers have more flexibility to offer childcare before and after school.
• Parents have more choice of care for their very young children.

Part 5: Welfare of Children

This part of the Act is designed to improve the law so that children are treated better and looked after in more situations and are given better support at school and in foster care. Key points are:

• More help is provided for young carers by their local authority.
• More help is provided for parents with disabled children.
• Foster children can continue to live with their former foster carers until they are 21.
• Schools are given more help to support children with medical needs.
• Local authorities must appoint a ‘Virtual School Head’ to ensure looked-after children are reaching their potential in school.
• The quality of care provided by children’s homes is improved.
• Free school meals are given to all young pupils in reception, year 1 and year 2.
• In order to protect children from addiction, tobacco and nicotine advertising must not appeal to children, and both smoking in a car with children and buying tobacco for children under 18 are now offences.

Part 6: The Children’s Commissioner

This part of the Act is designed to outline changes to the Children’s Commissioner’s role, which was originally set up in 2004. Key points are:

• The Children’s Commissioner should promote and protect the rights of all children in the UK, including England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
• The Commissioner is independent but explains to everyone, including children, what they are doing and how they are taking children’s views on board.
• The Commissioner must pay special attention to the rights of children in care, children living away from home and children who leave care.
• Children now have a say in who is chosen to be the Children’s Commissioner.

Part 7: Statutory Rights to Leave and Pay

This part of the Act is designed to ensure all parents are entitled to the same rights in terms of looking after their child, beginning from when the child is born or adopted. Key points are:

• Both parents are entitled to share time off after a baby is born or child is adopted. Shared parental leave is up to 50 weeks of leave and 37 weeks of paid leave and applies to parents of any gender.
• Parents who are adopting a child are given the same time off and pay rights as birth parents.

Part 8: Time Off Work

This part of the Children and Families Act is designed to help parents with a new child take time off work to look after them. Key points are:

• Both parents are allowed time off to go together to medical appointments before a baby is born. The mother’s partner is allowed unpaid leave for two antenatal appointments.
• Both parents are allowed time off work to care for a new baby.
• People who are adopting a child are allowed unpaid time off work to go to adoption meetings and to see the child prior to their adoption.

Part 9: Right to Request Flexible Working

This last part of the Act is designed to help parents and carers apply for flexible working hours in order to look after a child or family. Key points are:

• Parents or carers in any job role in any industry can apply for flexible working hours.
• People can request to change work times or work locations to help them balance work and family time better.

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Children and Families Act Summary

The Children and Families Act 2014 is a comprehensive piece of legislation that covers various topics relating to child welfare. The main points covered by the Act are:

1. Adoption has been made quicker and easier and has more focus on the child’s welfare.
2. Family court processes put children at the centre of all decisions and aim to support families if the parents split up.
3. Children with SEND have access to more help, have more say about the support they receive and will only be given one Education, Health and Care Plan (EHC) that lasts until they are 25.
4. Parents and schools have more choice and flexibility in terms of before and after school childcare.
5. The welfare of children should be the priority in all situations, including at school, in residential homes and in foster care. 
6. The Children’s Commissioner is chosen by children, promotes the rights of children and puts the views of children at the centre of all decisions.
7. All parents are entitled to the same leave and pay, whether they are birth parents or adopting a child.
8. Parents with a new child, whether by birth or adoption, have the right to time off work to attend appointments and look after their new child.
9. All parents and carers are able to request flexible working hours and locations to help them better manage work and family life.

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The Children and Families Act 2014 gives more support and protection to vulnerable children, young people and their families in all aspects of the child’s life. If you work with children, whether in education, healthcare or social care, then having an understanding of the law and how it applies to those you work with, is an essential part of your safeguarding responsibility.

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Further Resources:

• Safeguarding Online Courses
• Guidance on the Levels of Need in Safeguarding
• Safeguarding Children Legislation: Guidance for Schools