Criminal Justice and Courts Act 2015

20 Ill-treatment or wilful neglect: care worker offence E+W

(1) It is an offence for an individual who has the care of another individual by virtue of being a care worker to ill-treat or wilfully to neglect that individual.

(2) An individual guilty of an offence under this section is liable—

(a) on conviction on indictment, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 5 years or a fine (or both);

(b) on summary conviction, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding [F1 the general limit in a magistrates’ court] or a fine (or both).

(3) “Care worker” means an individual who, as paid work, provides—

(a) health care for an adult or child, other than excluded health care, F2 ...

(b) social care for an adult, [F3 or

(c) care or support for a child aged 16 or 17 at a regulated establishment,]

including an individual who, as paid work, supervises or manages individuals providing such care or is a director or similar officer of an organisation which provides such care.

(4) An individual does something as “paid work” if he or she receives or is entitled to payment for doing it other than—

(a) payment in respect of the individual's reasonable expenses,

(b) payment to which the individual is entitled as a foster parent,

(c) a benefit under social security legislation, or

(d) a payment made under arrangements under section 2 of the Employment and Training Act 1973 (arrangements to assist people to select, train for, obtain and retain employment).

(5) “Health care” includes—

(a) all forms of health care provided for individuals, including health care relating to physical health or mental health and health care provided for or in connection with the protection or improvement of public health, and

(b) procedures that are similar to forms of medical or surgical care but are not provided in connection with a medical condition,

and “excluded health care” has the meaning given in Schedule 4.

(6) “Social care” includes all forms of personal care and other practical assistance provided for individuals who are in need of such care or assistance by reason of age, illness, disability, pregnancy, childbirth, dependence on alcohol or drugs or any other similar circumstances.

[F4 (6A) “Regulated establishment” means—

(a) a children’s home in England as defined by section 1 of the Care Standards Act 2000;

(b) a residential family centre in England as defined by section 4 of that Act;

(c) an establishment in England providing accommodation in respect of which requirements under Part 2 of the Care Standards Act 2000 are applied by virtue of regulations under section 42 of that Act (power to extend application of Part 2 of that Act);

(d) youth detention accommodation in England as defined by section 248(1) of the Sentencing Act 2020;

(e) a place in Wales at which a care home service or a residential family centre service, as defined by Schedule 1 to the Regulation and Inspection of Social Care (Wales) Act 2016 (anaw 2), is provided;

(f) a place in Wales at which accommodation is provided to disabled children and which is notified to the Welsh Ministers in accordance with regulations under section 2 of that Act;

(g) youth detention accommodation in Wales as defined by section 188(1) of the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014 (anaw 4).]

(7) References in this section to a person providing health care or social care [F5 , or care or support at a regulated establishment,] do not include a person whose provision of such care is merely incidental to the carrying out of other activities by the person.

(8) In this section—

• “adult” means an individual aged 18 or over;

• “child” means an individual aged under 18;

• “foster parent” means—

  (a)

  a local authority foster parent within the meaning of the Children Act 1989,

  (b)

  a person with whom a child has been placed by a voluntary organisation under section 59(1)(a) of that Act, or

  (c)

  a private foster parent within the meaning of section 53 of the Safeguarding Vulnerable Groups Act 2006.

(9) In relation to an offence committed before [F6 2 May 2022], the reference in subsection (2)(b) to [F7 the general limit in a magistrates’ court] is to be read as a reference to 6 months.

(10) In relation to an offence committed before section 85 of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 comes into force, the reference in subsection (2)(b) to a fine is to be read as a reference to a fine not exceeding the statutory maximum.

Textual Amendments

F1 Words in s. 20(2)(b) substituted (7.2.2023 at 12.00 p.m.) by The Judicial Review and Courts Act 2022 (Magistrates’ Court Sentencing Powers) Regulations 2023 (S.I. 2023/149), regs. 1(2), 2(1), Sch. Pt. 1 table

F2 Word in s. 20(3) omitted (29.6.2026) by virtue of Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026 (c. 21), ss. 22(2)(a)(i), 78(2)(b)

F3 S. 20(3)(c) and word inserted (29.6.2026) by Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026 (c. 21), ss. 22(2)(a)(ii), 78(2)(b)

F4 S. 20(6A) inserted (29.6.2026) by Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026 (c. 21), ss. 22(2)(b), 78(2)(b)

F5 Words in s. 20(7) inserted (29.6.2026) by Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026 (c. 21), ss. 22(2)(c), 78(2)(b)

F6 Words in s. 20(9) substituted (28.4.2022) by The Criminal Justice Act 2003 (Commencement No. 33) and Sentencing Act 2020 (Commencement No. 2) Regulations 2022 (S.I. 2022/500), regs. 1(2), 5(1), Sch. Pt. 1

F7 Words in s. 20(9) substituted (7.2.2023 at 12.00 p.m.) by The Judicial Review and Courts Act 2022 (Magistrates’ Court Sentencing Powers) Regulations 2023 (S.I. 2023/149), regs. 1(2), 2(1), Sch. Pt. 1 table

Commencement Information

I1 S. 20 in force at 13.4.2015 by S.I. 2015/778, art. 3, Sch. 1 para. 16