PROTECTING OUR CHILDREN - CONFUSION AND CONCERN.

Pheby, D.F.H.

Where legislation extends substantially the field of public responsibility its consequences can rarely be predicted with certainty. It therefore becomes necessary at times to draw attention to the unintended consequences of such legislation, since these may be highly counter-productive. The law pertaining to children is one such field, where the post-war period has witnessed a flurry of legislative activity without parallel since the early 1890s. This essay is particularly concerned with the effects on professional practice of these legislative developments, and with their implications for the rights of individuals and professional confidentiality.

UNITED Kingdom; LEGAL status of children; CHILD advocacy (Law); CHILD care; CHILD welfare; LAW reform

Public Administration, 1984, Vol 62, Issue 2, p229

0033-3298

Academic Journal

10.1111/j.1467-9299.1984.tb00560.x