Section 26 – Decisions inconsistent with section 25
28.Section 26(1) is based on section 16(5) of the 1995 Act and provides that a decision can be made which is inconsistent with the welfare of the child requirement in section 25, if the Children’s Hearing or court considers this departure from that principle necessary to protect the public from serious harm. Subsection (2) provides that, in keeping with the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, when making such a decision the welfare of the child must still be treated as a primary consideration, rather than as the paramount consideration.