# National Assistance Act 1948, Section 64: Interpretation.

Extent: E+W+S

(1) In this Act, except where the context otherwise requires, the following expressions have the meanings hereby assigned to them respectively, that is to say:—
“blind person” means a person so blind as to be unable to perform any work for which eyesight is essential;
“child” means a person under the age of sixteen;
“dependant” has the meaning assigned to it by section seven of this Act;
“disability” includes mental as well as physical disability;
“disabled persons’ or old persons’ home” has the meaning assigned to it by section thirty-seven of this Act;
“existing poor law” means the enactments specified in Part I of the Seventh Schedule to this Act or, as respects Scotland, such of those enactments as apply to Scotland together with the enactments specified in Part II of that Schedule;
“functions” includes powers and duties;
“hospital” has the meaning assigned to it by section seventy-nine of the National Health Service Act, 1946, or as respects Scotland by section 108 of the National Health Service (Scotland) Act, 1978;
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“local authority”, save as provided in Part III of this Act, means the council of a county or county borough in Wales;
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“prescribed” means prescribed by regulations under this Act;
“requirements” does not include any medical, surgical, optical, aural or dental requirements;
“trade dispute” has the same meaning as in section 27 of the Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992
“voluntary organisation” means a body the activities of which are carried on otherwise than for profit, but does not include any public or local authority.
(2) References in this Act to any enactment shall, except where the context otherwise requires, be construed as references to that enactment as amended by or under any enactment, including this Act.
(3) For the purposes of this Act, a person shall be deemed, according to the law in England and Wales as well as according to the law in Scotland, not to have attained the age of sixteen years until the commencement of the sixteenth anniversary of the day of his birth.

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Source: https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/Geo6/11-12/29/section/64 (the official version)
Page: https://openlegislation.uk/national-assistance-act-1948/section-64
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives.