Section 100 — Children Act 1989: Restrictions on use of wardship jurisdiction.

Restrictions on use of wardship jurisdiction. 100 1 Section 7 of the Family Law Reform Act 1969 (which gives the High Court power to place a ward of court in the care, or under the supervision, of a local authority) shall cease to have effect.

2 No court shall exercise the High Court’s inherent jurisdiction with respect to children—

a so as to require a child to be placed in the care, or put under the supervision, of a local authority;

b so as to require a child to be accommodated by or on behalf of a local authority;

c so as to make a child who is the subject of a care order a ward of court; or d for the purpose of conferring on any local authority power to determine any question which has arisen, or which may arise, in connection with any aspect of parental responsibility for a child.

3 No application for any exercise of the court’s inherent jurisdiction with respect to children may be made by a local authority unless the authority have obtained the leave of the court.

4 The court may only grant leave if it is satisfied that—

a the result which the authority wish to achieve could not be achieved through the making of any order of a kind to which subsection (5) applies;

and b there is reasonable cause to believe that if the court’s inherent jurisdiction is not exercised with respect to the child he is likely to suffer significant harm.

5 This subsection applies to any order—

a made otherwise than in the exercise of the court’s inherent jurisdiction;

and b which the local authority is entitled to apply for (assuming, in the case of any application which may only be made with leave, that leave is granted).