Public Health Act 1936

209 Appointment and powers of child protection visitors.

(1) Every welfare authority shall from time to time make inquiry whether there are any persons residing within their area who undertake the nursing and maintenance of foster children.

(2) If any such persons are found, the welfare authority shall appoint one or more persons to be child protection visitors, whose duty it shall be to visit from time to time any foster children and the premises in which they are kept in order to satisfy themselves as to the health and well-being of the children and to give any necessary advice or directions as to the care of their health and their maintenance:

Provided that the authority may, either in addition to or in lieu of appointing child protection visitors, authorise one or more suitable persons to exercise the powers of such visitors, subject to such terms and conditions as may be stated in the authorisation, and, where any children have been placed out to nurse in the area of the authority by any philanthropic society, may, if satisfied that the interests of the children are properly safeguarded, so authorise the society to exercise those powers as respects those children, subject, however, to the obligation to furnish periodical reports to the welfare authority.

Where a welfare authority appoint or authorise one person only to act under this subsection, that person, and where they so appoint or authorise two or more persons, one at least of those persons, shall be a woman.

(3) If a person who undertakes the nursing and maintenance of a foster child refuses to allow any such visitor or other person to visit or examine the child or the premises in which the child is kept, he shall be guilty of an offence.

(4) If any such visitor or other person is refused admission to any premises in contravention of this Part of this Act, or has reason to believe that a child under the age of nine years is being kept in any premises in contravention of this Part of this Act, he may apply to a justice of the peace, and the justice, if satisfied on sworn information in writing that admission has been so refused, or that there is reasonable ground for behaving that an offence under this Part of this Act has been committed, may grant a warrant authorising the visitor or other person to enter the premises for the purpose of ascertaining whether any such offence as aforesaid has been committed, and, if any person obstructs any visitor or other person acting in pursuance of such a warrant, he shall be guilty of an offence.