The Child Measurement Programme (Wales) Regulations 2011

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations which apply to Wales are made under the National Health Service (Wales) Act 2006 (“the Act”). They provide for the functions of the Welsh Ministers under paragraph 7A(1) and (2) of Schedule 1 to the Act, to make arrangements with local authorities and proprietors of independent schools to provide for the weighing and measuring of children in schools, to be exercisable by Local Health Boards.

Regulation 2 includes definitions of parent (which includes carers) and relevant child (defined as a child in reception year or year 4).

Regulation 3 provides for the functions of the Welsh Ministers under paragraph 7A(1) and (2) of Schedule 1 to the Act to be exercisable by Local Health Boards. It also specifies that conditions have to be met to enable Local Health Boards to weigh and measure children and further process the resulting information for the purposes of the Child Measurement Programme for Wales (CMP) (an annual programme under which children are weighed and measured in schools).

Regulation 4 provides that certain conditions have to be met when the Welsh Ministers weigh and measure children and further process the resulting information for the purposes of the CMP.

Regulation 5 sets out the conditions referred to in regulation 3 and 4. The conditions provide that the children must able and willing to stand unaided to be measured and weighed, other than those who have been withdrawn from the CMP by their parents. The regulation also specifies the manner in which the information is to be gathered.

Regulation 6 makes provision for parents to have an opportunity to “opt-out” their child from the CMP.

Regulation 7 sets out the purposes for which information gathered under the Regulations may be further processed. Those purposes are: the release of height and weight information, together with related advisory material, to the parent of a child who has participated in the CMP; providing advice to such a parent in relation to such information; the release of the information to relevant health professionals where the information will be used for the provision of care and treatment of a particular child; and, the release of such information, in a form in which an individual child cannot be identified, for surveillance, research, monitoring or audit (including research into the causes and effects of weight related problems and the facilities and treatments which might be made available to such persons) and the planning of health services. This regulation also enables the Welsh Ministers or a person on behalf of the Welsh Ministers to release the height and weight information to a Local Health Board.

Regulation 8 provides that any person exercising functions in relation to the weighing or measuring to which these regulations apply or in relation to information resulting from such weighing or measuring must have regard to any guidance issued by the Welsh Ministers.