“The Child in Need”

22nd June 2009

David Bedingfield, a barrister of 4 Paper Buildings has written an article for Family Law Week entitled “The Child in Need and Section 20 of the Children Act after Southwark”.

Mr Bedingfield reviews the history of childcare in this country, and in particular the attitude of society towards the needs of orphaned, abandoned and homeless children. In the 18th century, there is the startling statistic that at least three quarters of children born in one parish had died within the year.

Moving onto more modern times, Mr Bedingfield reviews the duty of local authorities under Section 20 of the Children Act 1989 to provide accommodation. This is a particular problem for children seeking asylum. The Nationality, Asylum and Immigration Act 2002 was brought in to deal with this particular issue. The Children (Leaving Care) Act 2000 was another statute introduced to deal with the issue of children leaving the care system, who needed to find work and accommodation.

See Family Law Week 22nd June 2009 The Child in Need