# Children Act 1975, Section 59: General duty of local authority in care cases.

Extent: S

In section 12 of the Children Act 1948, the following subsections are substituted for subsection (1)—
“(1) In reaching any decision relating to a child in their care, a local authority shall give first consideration to the need to safeguard and promote the welfare of the child throughout his childhood; and shall so far as practicable ascertain the wishes and feelings of the child regarding the decision and give due consideration to them, having regard to his age and understanding.
(1A) If it appears to the local authority that it is necessary, for the purpose of protecting members of the public, to exercise their powers in relation to a particular child in their care in a manner which may not be consistent with their duty under the foregoing subsection, the authority may, notwithstanding that duty, act in that manner.”.

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Source: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1975/72/section/59 (the official version)
Page: https://openlegislation.uk/children-act-1975/section-59
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives.