Children and Young Persons Act 1969

70 Interpretation and ancillary provisions. U.K.

(1) In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears, the following expressions have the following meanings:—

• “the M1 Act of 1933” means the Children and Young Persons Act 1933;

• “the M2 Act of 1963” means the Children and Young Persons Act 1963;

• “approved school order”, “guardian” and “place of safety” have the same meanings as in the Act of 1933;

• [F1 “care order” has the meaning assigned to it by section 20 of this Act;]

• “child”, except in Part II (including Schedule 3) and sections 27, 63, 64 and 65 of this Act, means a person under the age of fourteen, and in that Part (including that Schedule) and those sections means a person under the age of eighteen and a person who has attained the age of eighteen and is the subject of a care order;

• . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . F2

• [F1 “interim order” has the meaning assigned to it by section 20 of this Act;]

• “local authority” [F3 except in relation to proceedings under section 1 of this Act instituted by a local education authority, means the council of a non-metropolitan county or of a metropolitan district] or London borough or the Common Council of the City of London;

• [F4 “local authority accommodation” means accommodation provided by or on behalf of a local authority (within the meaning of the Children Act 1989)]

• “petty sessions area” has the same meaning as in [F5 the M3 Magistrates’ Courts Act 1980] except that, in relation to a juvenile court constituted for the metropolitan area within the meaning of Part II of Schedule 2 to the Act of 1963, it means such a division of that area as is mentioned in paragraph 14 of that Schedule;

• . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . F2

• “police officer” means a member of a police force;

• . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . F2

• “reside” means habitually reside, and cognate expressions shall be construed accordingly except in section [F6 12(4) and (5)][F6 12B(1) and (2)] of this Act;

• “supervision order”, “supervised person” and “supervisor” have the meanings assigned to them by section 11 of this Act;

• . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . F2

• “young person” means a person who has attained the age of fourteen and is under the age of seventeen;

and it is hereby declared that, in the expression “care or control”, “care” includes protection and guidance and “control” includes discipline.

[F7 (1A) Where, in the case of a child whose father and mother were not married to each other at the time of his birth, an order of any court is in force giving the right to the actual custody of the child to the father, any reference in this Act to the parent of the child includes, unless the contrary intention appears, a reference to the father.

• In this subsection “actual custody”, in relation to a child, means actual possession of his person.]

[F8 (1B) In subsection (1A) of this section the reference to a child whose father and mother were not married to each other at the time of his birth shall be construed in accordance with section 1 of the Family Law Reform Act 1987 and “actual custody”, in relation to a child, means actual possession of his person.]

(2) Without prejudice to any power apart from this subsection to bring proceedings on behalf of another person, any power to make an application which is exercisable by a child or young person by virtue of section 15(1), [F9 21(2), 22(4) or (6) or 28(5)] of this Act shall also be exercisable on his behalf by his parent or guardian; and in this subsection “guardian” includes any person who was a guardian of the child or young person in question at the time when any supervision order, [F9 care order or warrant] to which the application relates was originally made.

(3) In section 99(1) of the Act of 1933 (under which the age which a court presumes or declares to be the age of a person brought before it is deemed to be his true age for the purposes of that Act) the references to that Act shall be construed as including references to this Act.

(4) Subject to the following subsection, any reference in this Act to any enactment is a reference to it as amended, and includes a reference to it as applied, by or under any other enactment including this Act.

(5) Any reference in this Act to an enactment of the Parliament of Northern Ireland shall be construed as a reference to that enactment as amended by any Act of that Parliament, whether passed before or after this Act, and to any enactment of that Parliament for the time being in force which re-enacts the said enactment with or without modifications.

Textual Amendments

F1 Definitions repealed (prosp.) by Children Act 1989 (c. 41, SIF 20), s. 108(2)(6)(7), Sch. 14 para. 27(4), Sch. 15

F2 Definitions repealed by Child Care Act 1980 (c. 5, SIF 20), s. 89, Sch. 6

F3 Words substituted by Local Government Act 1972 (c. 70, SIF 81:1), Sch. 23 para. 16

F4 Definition inserted (prosp.) by Children Act 1989 (c. 41, SIF 20), s. 108(2)(4)(6), Sch. 12 para. 29(a), Sch. 14 para. 1(1)

F5 Words “substituted by Magistrates” Courts Act 1980 (c. 43, SIF 82), s. 154(2) Sch. 7 para. 85

F6 “12B(1) and (2)” substituted (prosp.) for “12(4) and (5)” by Children Act 1989 (c. 41, SIF 20), s. 108(2)(4)(6), Sch. 12 para. 29(b), Sch. 14 para. 1(1)

F7 S. 70(1A) inserted by Family Law Reform Act 1987 (c. 42, SIF 49:7), s. 8(1)

F8 S. 70(1B) inserted by Family Law Reform Act 1987 (c. 42, SIF 49:7), s. 33(1), Sch. 2 para. 26

F9 Words repealed (prosp.) by Children Act 1989 (c. 41, SIF 20), s. 108(2)(6)(7), Sch. 14 para. 27(4), Sch. 15

Marginal Citations

M1 1933 c. 12(20).

M2 1963 c. 37(20).

M3 1980 c. 43(82).