Children and Young Persons (Scotland) Act 1937

1Notices to be given by persons receiving children for reward

(1)Where a person undertakes for reward the nursing and maintenance of a child under the age of nine years apart from his parents, or having no parents, he shall give notice in writing thereof to the local authority:—

(a)in the case of a child not already in his care, being the first child proposed to be received by him for reward in the dwelling occupied or proposed to be occupied for the purpose, not less than seven days before he receives the child;

(b)in the case of any other child not already in his care, not less than forty-eight hours before he receives the child; and

(c)in the case of a child already in his care without reward, within forty-eight hours after entering into the undertaking :

Provided that, in any proceedings in respect of a failure to give such notice as aforesaid, it shall be a defence for the accused person to prove that the child was received by him upon an emergency and that notice was given by him within twelve hours thereafter.

For the purposes of this subsection, an undertaking shall be deemed to be an undertaking for reward if there is any payment or gift of money or money's worth, or any promise to pay or give money or money's worth, irrespective of whether there is any intention of making profit.

(2)The notice required by the preceding subsection shall state the name and sex of the child, the date and place of his birth, the name of the person undertaking his nursing and maintenance, the dwelling within which he is to be, or is being, kept and the name of the person from whom he is to be, or was, received.

(3)Any reference in the following provisions of this Part of this Act to a child in respect of whom such a notice as aforesaid is required to be given shall be construed as including a reference to a child under the age of nine years in respect of whom such a notice has been given and who is still living apart from his parents, if any, with the person by whom the notice was given.

(4)If a person who is maintaining a child in respect of whom notice is required to be given under this Part of this Act changes his residence, he shall at least seven days before so doing give to the local authority notice in writing of the change, and, where the residence to which he moves is situate in the area of another local authority, he shall at least seven days before so moving give to that local authority the like notice as respects each child in his care as is by this section required to be given on the first reception of a child:

Provided that, where an immediate change of residence is necessitated by any emergency, a notice under this subsection may be given at any time within forty-eight hours after the change of residence.

(5)If any such child dies or is removed from the care of the person who has undertaken his nursing and maintenance, that person shall, within twenty-four hours thereof, give to the local authority and to the person from whom the child was received notice in writing of the death or removal, and in a case of removal the notice shall also state the name and address of the person to whose care the child has been transferred.

(6)If any person required to give a notice under this section fails to give the notice before the latest time specified for giving the notice, he shall be guilty of an offence under this Part of this Act, and, if the consideration for the nursing and maintenance of the child in respect of which notice ought to have been given consisted in whole or in part of a lump sum, the person failing to give the notice shall, in addition to any other penalty under this Part of this Act, be liable to forfeit that sum or such less sum as the court having cognizance of the case may deem just, and the sum forfeited shall be applied for the benefit of the child in such manner as the court may direct.

For the purposes of any enactment by which the time for taking proceedings is limited, an offence under this subsection shall be deemed to continue so long as the child in respect of whom a notice ought to have been given remains in the care of the offender without any notice having been given.

(7)Any reference in this Part of this Act to a notice required to be given thereunder or by or under any provision thereof shall be construed as including a reference to a notice required to be given under any enactment relating to infant life protection repealed by this Act, and any person who at the commencement of this Act is nursing and maintaining for reward a child in respect of whom a notice required to be given under any such enactment so repealed has not been given before the latest time specified for giving such notice shall be deemed to be guilty of an offence under the last foregoing subsection.