{
  "url": "https://openlegislation.uk/children-act-2004/section-16E",
  "json_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/children-act-2004/section-16E.json",
  "legislation": "ukpga/2004/31",
  "legislation_title": "Children Act 2004",
  "legislation_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/children-act-2004",
  "path": "section/16E",
  "kind": "section",
  "number": "16E",
  "heading": "Local arrangements for safeguarding and promoting welfare of children",
  "text": "(1) The safeguarding partners for a local authority area in England must make arrangements for—\n(a) the safeguarding partners, and\n(b) any relevant agencies that they consider appropriate,\nto work together in exercising their functions, so far as the functions are exercised for the purpose of safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children in the area.\n(2) The arrangements must include arrangements for the safeguarding partners to work together to identify and respond to the needs of children in the area.\n(2A) For the purposes of this section, a relevant agency is a “designated childcare or education agency” if it—\n(a) has functions relating to the provision of childcare or education (or both), and\n(b) is designated as such by regulations made by the Secretary of State.\n(3) In this section—\n“relevant agency”, in relation to a local authority area in England, means a person who—\n(a)is specified in regulations made by the Secretary of State, and\n(b)exercises functions in that area in relation to children;\n“safeguarding partner”, in relation to a local authority area in England, means—\n(a)the local authority;\n(b) an integrated care board for an area any part of which falls within the local authority area;\n(c)the chief officer of police for a police area any part of which falls within the local authority area.",
  "extent": null,
  "status": null,
  "version": "current",
  "annotations": [
    {
      "type": "F",
      "label": "F1",
      "text": "S. 16E and crossheading inserted (19.3.2018 for specified purposes, 29.6.2018 in so far as not already in force) by Children and Social Work Act 2017 (c. 16), ss. 16, 70(2); S.I. 2018/346, reg. 3(b); S.I. 2018/497, reg. 3(e)"
    },
    {
      "type": "F",
      "label": "F2",
      "text": "S. 16E(2A) inserted (29.4.2026 for specified purposes) by Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026 (c. 21), ss. 2(4), 78(1)(a)(5)"
    },
    {
      "type": "F",
      "label": "F3",
      "text": "Words in s. 16E(3) substituted (1.7.2022) by Health and Care Act 2022 (c. 31), s. 186(6), Sch. 4 para. 76; S.I. 2022/734, reg. 2(a), Sch. (with regs. 13, 29, 30)"
    }
  ],
  "outstanding_effects": [
    {
      "type": "word omitted",
      "affecting": "ukpga/2026/21",
      "affecting_title": "Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026"
    },
    {
      "type": "inserted",
      "affecting": "ukpga/2026/21",
      "affecting_title": "Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026"
    },
    {
      "type": "substituted",
      "affecting": "ukpga/2026/21",
      "affecting_title": "Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026"
    },
    {
      "type": "words inserted",
      "affecting": "ukpga/2026/21",
      "affecting_title": "Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026"
    }
  ],
  "provenance": {
    "source": "legislation.gov.uk",
    "source_url": "https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2004/31/section/16E",
    "retrieved_at": "2026-10-29T09:16:56.383931+00:00"
  },
  "licence": "Open Government Licence v3.0",
  "licence_url": "https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/",
  "attribution": "Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives."
}