(1) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(2) If any child whose evidence is received unsworn in any proceedings for an offence by virtue of section 52 of the Criminal Justice Act 1991wilfully gives false evidence in such circumstances that he would, if the evidence had been given on oath, have been guilty of perjury, he shall be liable on summary conviction to be dealt with as if he had been summarily convicted of an indictable offence punishable in the case of an adult with imprisonment.
39 Power to prohibit publication of certain matter....
(1) In relation to any proceedings, other than criminal proceedings, in any court . . . , the court may direct that the following may not be included in a publication —
(a) ...the name, address or school ... of any child or young person concerned in the proceedings, either as being the person by or against or in respect of whom the proceedings are taken, or as being a witness therein:
(aa) any particulars calculated to lead to the identification of a child or young person so concerned in the proceedings;
(b) a picture that is or includes a picture of any child or young person so concerned in the proceedings ...;
except in so far (if at all) as may be permitted by the direction of the court.
(2) Any person who includes matter in a publication in contravention of any such direction shall on summary conviction be liable in respect of each offence to a fine not exceeding level 5 on the standard scale.
(3) In this section—
“publication” includes any speech, writing, relevant programme or other communication in whatever form, which is addressed to the public at large or any section of the public (and for this purpose every relevant programme shall be taken to be so addressed), but does not include a document prepared for use in particular legal proceedings;
“relevant programme” means a programme included in a programme service within the meaning of the Broadcasting Act 1990.
41 Power to proceed with case in absence of child or young person.
Where in any proceedings with relation to any of the offences mentioned in the First Schedule to this Act, the court is satisfied that the attendance before the court of any child or young person in respect of whom the offence is alleged to have been committed is not essential to the just hearing of the case, the case may be proceeded with and determined in the absence of the child or young person.
42 Extension of power to take deposition of child or young person.
(1) Where a justice of the peace is satisfied by the evidence of a duly qualified medical practitioner that the attendance before a court of any child or young person in respect of whom any of the offences mentioned in the First Schedule to this Act is alleged to have been committed would involve serious danger to his life or health, the justice may take in writing the deposition of the child or young person on oath, and shall thereupon subscribe the depostion and add thereto a statement of his reason for taking it and of the day when and place where it was taken, and of the names of the persons (if any) present at the taking thereof.
(2) The justice taking any such deposition shall transmit it with his statement—
(a) if the deposition relates to an offence for which any accused person is already sent for trial, to the proper officer of the court for the trial at which the accused person has been sent; and
(b) in any other case, to the proper officer of the court before which proceedings are pending in respect of the offence.
43 Admission of deposition of child or young person in evidence.
Where, in any proceedings in respect of any of the offences mentioned in the First Schedule of this Act, the court is satisfied by the evidence of a duly qualified medical practitioner that the attendance before the court of any child or young person in respect of whom the offence is alleged to have been committed would involve serious danger to his life or health, any deposition of the child or young person taken under the Indictable Offences Act 1848, or this Part of this Act, shall be admissible in evidence either for or against the accused person without further proof thereof if it purports to be signed by the justice by or before whom it purports to be taken:
Provided that the deposition shall not be admissible in evidence against the accused person unless it is proved that reasonable notice of the intention to take the deposition has been served upon him and that he or his legal representative had, or might have had if he had chosen to be present, an opportunity of cross-examining the child or young person making the deposition.
(1) Every court in dealing with a child or young person who is brought before it, either as . . . an offender or otherwise, shall have regard to the welfare of the child or young person and shall in a proper case take steps for removing him from undesirable surroundings, and for securing that proper provision is made for his education and training.
(2) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(1) Magistrates' courts—
(a) constituted in accordance with this section or section 66 of the Courts Act 2003 (judges having powers of District Judges (Magistrates' Courts)), and
(b) sitting for the purpose of—
(i) hearing any charge against a child or young person, or
(ii) exercising any other jurisdiction conferred on youth courts by or under this or any other Act,
are to be known as youth courts.
(2) A justice of the peace is not qualified to sit as a member of a youth court for the purpose of dealing with any proceedings unless he has an authorisation extending to the proceedings.
(3) He has an authorisation extending to the proceedings only if he has been authorised by the Lord Chief Justice, with the concurrence of the Lord Chancellor, to sit as a member of a youth court to deal with—
(a) proceedings of that description, or
(b) all proceedings dealt with by youth courts.
(4) The Lord Chief Justice may, with the concurrence of the Lord Chancellor, by rules make provision about—
(a) the grant and revocation of authorisations,
(b) the appointment of chairmen of youth courts, and
(c) the composition of youth courts.
(5) Rules under subsection (4) may confer powers on the Lord Chancellor or Lord Chief Justice with respect to any of the matters specified in the rules.
(6) Rules under subsection (4) may be made only after consultation with the Criminal Procedure Rule Committee.
(7) Rules under subsection (4) are to be made by statutory instrument.
(8) A statutory instrument containing rules under subsection (4) is subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.
(9) The Lord Chief Justice may nominate a judicial office holder (as defined in section 109(4) of the Constitutional Reform Act 2005) to exercise his functions under subsection (3) or (4) or his powers under rules under subsection (4).
(1) Subject as hereinafter provided, no charge against a child or young person, and no application whereof the hearing is by rules made under this section assigned to youth courts ,shall be heard by a magistrates' court which is not a youth court:
Provided that—
(a) a charge made jointly against a child or young person and a person who has attained the age of eighteen years shall be heard by a magistrates' court other than a youth court; and
(b) where a child or young person is charged with an offence, the charge may be heard by a magistrates' court which is not a youth court if a person who has attained the age of eighteen years is charged at the same time with aiding, abetting, causing, procuring, allowing or permitting that offence; and
(c) where, in the course of any proceedings before any magistrates' court other than a youth court, it appears that the person to whom the proceedings relate is a child or young person, nothing in this subsection shall be construed as preventing the court, if it thinks fit so to do, from proceeding with the hearing and determination of those proceedings.
(1A) If a notification that the accused desires to plead guilty without appearing before the court is received by the designated officer for a court in pursuance of section 12 of the Magistrates’ Courts Act 1980 and the court has no reason to believe that the accused is a child or young person, then, if he is a child or young person he shall be deemed to have attained the age of eighteen for the purposes of subsection (1) of this section in its application to the proceedings in question.
(2) No direction, whether contained in this or any other Act, that a charge shall be brought before a youth courtshall be construed as restricting the powers of any justice or justices to entertain an application for bail or for a remand, and to hear such evidence as may be necessary for that purpose.
(3) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(1) Youth courts shall sit as often as may be necessary for the purpose of exercising any jurisdiction conferred on them by or under this or any other Act.
(2) . . . No person shall be present at any sitting of a youth court except—
(a) members and officers of the court;
(b) parties to the case before the court, their legal representatives, and witnesses and other persons directly concerned in that case;
(c) bonâ fide representatives of newspapers or news agencies;
(d) such other persons as the court may specially authorise to be present:
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(3) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
48 Miscellaneous provisions as to powers of youth courts.
(1) A youth court sitting for the purpose of hearing a charge against, . . . , a person who is believed to be a child or young person may, if it thinks fit to do so, proceed with the hearing and determination of the charge . . . notwithstanding that it is discovered that the person in question is not a child or young person.
[(2) The attainment of the age of eighteen years by . . . a person in whose case an order for conditional discharge has been made, shall not deprive a youth court of jurisdiction to enforce his attendance and deal with him in respect of . . . the commission of a further offence . . . .
(3) When a youth court has remanded a child or young person for information to be obtained with respect to him, any youth courtacting in the same local justice area—
(a) may in his absence extend the period for which he is remanded, so, however, that he appears before a court or a justice of the peace at least once in every twenty-one days;
(b) when the required information has been obtained, may deal with him finally;
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(4) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . a youth courtmay sit on any day for the purpose of hearing and determining a charge against a child or young person in respect of an indictable offence.
(5) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(6) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
49 Restrictions on reports of proceedings in which children or young persons are concerned.
(1) No matter relating to any child or young person concerned in proceedings to which this section applies shall while he is under the age of 18 be included in any publication if it is likely to lead members of the public to identify him as someone concerned in the proceedings.
(2) The proceedings to which this section applies are—
(a) proceedings in a youth court;
(b) proceedings on appeal from a youth court (including proceedings by way of case stated);
(c) proceedings in a magistrates' court under Schedule 7 to the Sentencing Code (proceedings for breach, revocation or amendment of youth rehabilitation orders);
(d) proceedings on appeal from a magistrates' court arising out of any proceedings mentioned in paragraph (c) (including proceedings by way of case stated).
(3) In this section “publication” includes any speech, writing, relevant programme or other communication in whatever form, which is addressed to the public at large or any section of the public (and for this purpose every relevant programme shall be taken to be so addressed), but does not include an indictment or other document prepared for use in particular legal proceedings.
(3A) The matters relating to a person in relation to which the restrictions imposed by subsection (1) above apply (if their inclusion in any publication is likely to have the result mentioned in that subsection) include in particular—
(a) his name,
(b) his address,
(c) the identity of any school or other educational establishment attended by him,
(d) the identity of any place of work, and
(e) any still or moving picture of him.
(4) For the purposes of this section a child or young person is “concerned” in any proceedings if he is—
(a) a person against or in respect of whom the proceedings are taken, or
(b) a person called, or proposed to be called, to give evidence in the proceedings.
(4A) If a court is satisfied that it is in the public interest to do so, it may, in relation to a child or young person who has been convicted of an offence, by order dispense to any specified extent with the restrictions imposed by subsection (1) above in relation to any proceedings before it to which this section applies by virtue of subsection (2)(a) or (b) above, being proceedings relating to—
(a) the prosecution or conviction of the offender for the offence;
(b) the manner in which he, or his parent or guardian, should be dealt with in respect of the offence;
(c) the enforcement, amendment, variation, revocation or discharge of any order made in respect of the offence;
(d) where an attendance centre order is made in respect of the offence, the enforcement of any rules made under section 394(1)(d) or (e) of the Sentencing Code; or
(e) where a detention and training order is made, the enforcement of any requirements imposed under section 242(4)(b) of the Sentencing Code.
(4B) A court shall not exercise its power under subsection (4A) above without—
(a) affording the parties to the proceedings an opportunity to make representations; and
(b) taking into account any representations which are duly made.
(5) Subject to subsection (7) below, a court may, in relation to proceedings before it to which this section applies, by order dispense to any specified extent with the requirements of this section in relation to a child or young person who is concerned in the proceedings if it is satisfied—
(a) that it is appropriate to do so for the purpose of avoiding injustice to the child or young person; or
(b) that, as respects a child or young person to whom this paragraph applies who is unlawfully at large, it is necessary to dispense with those requirements for the purpose of apprehending him and bringing him before a court or returning him to the place in which he was in custody.
(6) Paragraph (b) of subsection (5) above applies to any child or young person who is charged with or has been convicted of—
(a) a violent offence,
(b) a sexual offence, ...
(ba) a terrorism offence, ...
(bb) an offence under section 18 of, or listed in section 33(3)(a) of, the National Security Act 2023, or
(c) an offence punishable in the case of a person aged 21 or over with imprisonment for fourteen years or more.
(7) The court shall not exercise its power under subsection (5)(b) above—
(a) except in pursuance of an application by or on behalf of the Director of Public Prosecutions; and
(b) unless notice of the application has been given by the Director of Public Prosecutions to any legal representative of the child or young person.
(8) The court’s power under subsection (4A) or (5) above may be exercised by a single justice.
(9) If a publication includes any matter in contravention of subsection (1) above, the following persons shall be guilty of an offence and liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 5 on the standard scale—
(a) where the publication is a newspaper or periodical, any proprietor, any editor and any publisher of the newspaper or periodical;
(b) where the publication is a relevant programme—
(i) any body corporate or Scottish partnership engaged in providing the programme service in which the programme is included; and
(ii) any person having functions in relation to the programme corresponding to those of an editor of a newspaper;
(c) in the case of any other publication, any person publishing it.
(9A) Where a person is charged with an offence under subsection (9) above it shall be a defence to prove that at the time of the alleged offence he was not aware, and neither suspected nor had reason to suspect, that the publication included the matter in question.
(9B) If an offence under subsection (9) above committed by a body corporate is proved—
(a) to have been committed with the consent or connivance of, or
(b) to be attributable to any neglect on the part of,
an officer, the officer as well as the body corporate is guilty of the offence and liable to be proceeded against and punished accordingly.
(9C) In subsection (9B) above “officer” means a director, manager, secretary or other similar officer of the body, or a person purporting to act in any such capacity.
(9D) If the affairs of a body corporate are managed by its members, “director” in subsection (9C) above means a member of that body.
(9E) Where an offence under subsection (9) above is committed by a Scottish partnership and is proved to have been committed with the consent or connivance of a partner, he as well as the partnership shall be guilty of the offence and shall be liable to be proceeded against and punished accordingly.
(10) In any proceedings under Schedule 7 to the Sentencing Code (proceedings for breach, revocation or amendment of youth rehabilitation orders) before a magistrates’ court other than a youth court or on appeal from such a court it shall be the duty of the magistrates’ court or the appellate court to announce in the course of the proceedings that this section applies to the proceedings; and if the court fails to do so this section shall not apply to the proceedings.
(11) In this section—
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
“picture” includes a likeness however produced;
“relevant programme” means a programme included in a programme service, within the meaning of the Broadcasting Act 1990;
“sexual offence” means an offence listed in Part 2 of Schedule 18 to the Sentencing Code;
“specified” means specified in an order under this section;
“terrorism offence” means an offence listed in Part 3 of Schedule 18 to the Sentencing Code;
“violent offence” means an offence listed in Part 1 of Schedule 18 to the Sentencing Code;
and a person who, having been granted bail, is liable to arrest (whether with or without a warrant) shall be treated as unlawfully at large.
58 Power of Secretary of State to send certain juvenile offenders to approved schools.
The Secretary of State may by order direct that—
(a) a person who is under the age of eighteen years and is undergoing detention in a Borstal institution; or
(aa) a child or young person sentenced to be detained under section 250 of the Sentencing Code with respect to whom the Secretary of State is authorised to give directions under section 260 of that Code; or
(b) a child or young person sentenced to be detained under section 91 of the Powers of Criminal Courts (Sentencing) Act 2000 with respect to whom he is authorised to give directions under section 92 of that Act; or
(c) a young person who has been ordered to be imprisoned and has been pardoned by His Majesty on condition of his agreeing to undergo training in a school,
shall be transferred or sent to and detained in an approved school specified in the order; and any such order shall be an authority for his detention in that approved school or in such other approved school as the Secretary of State may from time to time determine until such date as may be specified in the order:
Provided that the date to be so specified shall be not later than that on which he will in the opinion of the Secretary of State attain the age of nineteen years nor later—
(a) in the case of a person who was ... sentenced to detention under the said section 250 or section 91, than the date on which his detention would have expired;
(b) in the case of a young person who has been sentenced to imprisonment and pardoned as aforesaid, than three years from the date as from which his sentence began to run;
(c) in the case of a person who was undergoing detention in a Borstal institution, than the end of the period for which he would have been liable to be detained therein.
59 Miscellaneous provisions as to summary proceedings against juvenile offenders.
(1) The words “conviction” and “sentence” shall cease to be used in relation to children and young persons dealt with summarily and any reference in any enactment whether passed before or after the commencement of this Act to a person convicted, a conviction or a sentence shall, in the case of a child or young person, be construed as including a reference to a person found guilty of an offence, a finding of guilt or an order made upon such a finding, as the case may be:
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(2) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
77 Provision of remand homes by councils of counties and county boroughs.
(1) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(2) The authority or persons reponsible for the management of any institution other than a prison may, subject in the case of an institution supported wholly or partly out of public funds to the consent of the Government department concerned, arrange with the council of a county or county borough for the use of the institution, or any part thereof, as a remand home upon such terms as may be agreed.
(2A) The council of a county or county borough may contribute, towards the expenditure incurred by any society or person in establishing, enlarging or improving an institution for the purpose of its being used, in accordance with an arrangement with the council, as a remand home for that county or county borough, such sums and subject to such conditions, as the council think fit; and subsection (5) of section seventy-seven of the Criminal Justice Act 1948, shall apply to any sums so paid as it applies to the payments referred to in that subsection.
(3) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(4) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(1) The managers of any school intended for the education and training of persons to be sent there in pursuance of this Act may apply to the Secretary of State to approve the school for that purpose, and the Secretary of State may, after making such inquiries as he thinks fit, approve the school for that purpose and issue a certificate of approval to the managers.
(2) If at any time the Secretary of State is dissatisfied with the condition or management of an approved school, or considers its continuance as an approved school unnecessary, he may by notice served on the managers withdraw the certificate of approval of the school as from a date specified in the notice, not being less than six months after the date of the notice, and upon the date so specified (unless the notice is previously withdrawn) the withdrawal of the certificate shall take effect and the school shall cease to be an approved school:
Provided that the Secretary of State, instead of withdrawing the certificate of approval, may by a notice served on the managers of the school prohibit the admission of persons to the school for such time as may be specified in the notice, or until the notice is revoked.
(3) The managers of an approved school may, on giving six months’ notice in writing to the Secretary of State of their intention so to do, surrender the certificate of approval of the school, and at the expiration of six months from the date of the notice (unless the notice is previously withdrawn), the surrender of the certificate shall take effect, and the school shall cease to be an approved school.
(4) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(5) The Secretary of State shall cause any grant of a certificate of approval of an approved school, and any notice of the withdrawal of, or intention to surrender, such a certificate, to be advertised within one month from the date thereof in the London Gazette.
80 Provision of approved schools by local authorities.
(1) A local authority may, with the approval of the Secretary of State, undertake, or combine with any other local authority in undertaking, or contribute such sums of money upon such conditions as they may think fit towards, the purchase, establishment, building, alteration, enlargement, rebuilding or management of an approved school:
Provided that, before giving his approval, the Secretary of State shall satisfy himself that the proposed expenditure is reasonable and, where it is proposed to purchase, build or establish a new school, that there is a deficiency of approved school accommodation which cannot properly be remedied in any other way.
(2) In the event of a deficiency of approved school accommodation, it shall be the duty of every local authority concerned to take, either alone or in combination with other local authorities, appropriate steps under this section to remedy the deficiency.
81 Classification, administration, and management.
(1) The Secretary of State may classify approved schools according to the age of the persons for whom they are intended, the religious persuasion of such persons, the character of the education and training given therein, their geographical position, and otherwise as he thinks best calculated to secure that a person sent to an approved school is sent to a school appropriate to his case, or as may be necessary or the purposes of this Act.
(2) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(3) The provisions set out in the Fourth Schedule to this Act shall have effect in relation to the administration of approved schools and the treatment of persons sent thereto.
(1) In Part 2 of this Act “local authority” has the same meaning as in the Education Act 1996 (see section 579(1) of that Act).
(1A) The local authorities for the purposes of Parts III and IV of this Act shall be the council of counties (other than metropolitan counties), of metropolitan districts and of London boroughs and the Common Council of the City of London but, in relation to Wales, shall be the councils of counties and county boroughs.
(2) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(3) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(4) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(4A) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(5) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(6) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
(7) . . . a local authority may refer to a committee appointed for the purposes of this Act, or to any committee appointed for the purposes of any other Act, any matter relating to the exercise by the authority of any of their powers under this act and may delegate any of the said powers (other than any power to borrow money) to any such committee.
(8) A local authority, or a committee to whom any powers of a local authority under this Act have been delegated, may by resolution empower the clerk or the chief education officer of the authority to exercise in the name of the authority in any case which appears to him to be one of urgency any powers of the authority or, as the case may be, of the committee with respect to the institution of proceedings under this Act.