Section 23 – duty of local authority to provide residential establishments for detained children
102.Sections 18 and 19 make changes to the places in which children can be detained, with the result that most children are likely to be detained in secure accommodation. As defined in the 2011 Act, as it is amended by section 26, “secure accommodation” in Scotland is accommodation provided for the purposes of depriving children of their liberty which is provided in a residential establishment by a secure accommodation service. A “residential establishment”, also defined in the 2011 Act, is an establishment provided by a local authority, a voluntary organisation or by another person which provides accommodation for the purposes of the 2011 Act, the Children (Scotland) Act 1995 and the Social Work (Scotland) Act 1968.
103.Under section 59 of the 1968 Act, local authorities have a duty to provide and maintain residential establishments that are required for their functions under a number of enactments.(68) But the list of enactments does not currently include the 1995 Act. Section 23 will add the 1995 Act to that list, so that the duty to provide and maintain residential establishments includes providing and maintaining these establishments for the purposes of local authority functions conferred under or by virtue of the 1995 Act.
Local authorities may provide and maintain residential establishments themselves, jointly with other local authorities or by securing their provision by voluntary organisations or other person. See section 59(2) of the Social Work (Scotland) Act 1968 (legislation.gov.uk).
