Explanatory note

The Children (Scotland) Act 2020 (“the Act”) received Royal Assent on 1 October 2020. Sections 32, 33 and 35 came into force the following day.

Regulation 2 brings into force section 30(1) and (3) to (7) of the Act on 22 June 2025.

Section 30 amends provisions of the Children (Scotland) Act 1995 (“the 1995 Act”), the Adoption and Children (Scotland) Act 2007 (“the 2007 Act”) and the Children’s Hearings (Scotland) Act 2011 (“the 2011 Act”). The provisions as amended require a court, when considering a child’s welfare, to consider whether any delay in proceedings would negatively affect the child’s welfare. This can be as part of a decision by a court about an order under section 16 of the 1995 Act, in relation to adoption cases under section 14 of the 2007 Act, or for children’s hearings or court proceedings under section 25 of the 2011 Act.

Regulation 3 brings into force section 1(1) and (2) of the Act on 21 September 2025.

Section 1(1) (proceedings under the Children (Scotland) Act 1995) introduces the amendments made by the rest of the section. Section 1(2) amends subsection (1) and inserts subsections (1A) to (1D) of section 6 of the 1995 Act. The provisions modify the requirements which apply when a person, in reaching any major decision which involves fulfilling a parental responsibility or exercising a parental right or giving consent, gives the child the opportunity to express the child’s views.

Regulation 4 contains a saving provision so that a person reaching any major decision to which section 6(1) of the 1995 Act applies is not required to comply with the additional requirements introduced by section 1(2) of the Act, where the person has obtained the child’s views, or the child did not wish to express views, before 21 September 2025.