Commentary on Sections Schedule 4: Child minding and day care
204.This Schedule makes minor amendments to Schedule 9A of the Children Act 1989 which was introduced by the Care Standards Act 2000.
205.Paragraph 2 enables conditions imposed by a court or tribunal upon a child minder or day care provider's registration to be treated in the same way as conditions imposed by the registration authority. This will clarify the status of conditions imposed by a court or tribunal and the enforcement action that may be taken by the registration authority if these conditions are breached.
206.Paragraph 3 makes clear that fees for registration as a child minder or day care provider are payable on application for registration and are non-refundable.
207.Paragraph 4 creates more flexibility in the way that the registration authority can levy ongoing fees by removing the requirement that fees be 'annual'.
208.Paragraph 5. Under Schedule 9A, a person may be disqualified for registration for child minding or day care. That has the result not only that the person may not be registered, but that he may not be concerned in certain ways with the provision of day care (paragraph 4(4) of the Schedule) or be employed in the provision of day care (paragraph 4(5)). However, disqualification may be waived (paragraph 4(3A)). The purpose of the amendment is to clarify that waiver of disqualification may be granted not only for registration itself but also for the purposes of the prohibitions in paragraphs 4(4) and 4(5).
209.Paragraph 6 removes the requirement upon the registration authority to make an assessment as to whether all persons looking after children are suitable to do so, and all persons living or working on the day care premises are suitable to be in regular contact with children. As part of its determination as to whether the applicant is qualified for registration, the registration authority will check that the employer has appropriate procedures in place to make suitability assessments, thereby enabling him to qualify for registration. The registration authority will continue to assess the suitability of the person in charge of a day care setting and to assess that the applicant is qualified for registration under section 79F.
210.Paragraph 7 provides that Part 10A of the Children Act 1989 does not apply to the provision of day care in a hotel (or other similar establishment) for children staying in that hotel where the day care is provided only between the hours of 6.00 p.m. and 2.00 a.m. and the person providing the day care (which could be the hotel or an agency) does so for no more than two different clients at the same time.
211.Paragraph 8. At present a person who is disqualified from registration for providing day care may not be concerned with the management of day care, or have any financial interest in the provision of day care. Paragraph 7 removes the prohibition on disqualified persons having a financial interest in day care, and limits the scope of the prohibition relating to management to disqualified persons who are directly concerned with the management of day care.
212.Paragraph 9 clarifies that unincorporated associations can be registered in their own name rather than in the name of individuals who make up a particular association. It ensures that enforcement action can be taken against the association as a whole as well as, where appropriate, against responsible individuals.