Regulation of child contact centre services consultation: analysis

Glossary

1995 Act

The Children (Scotland) Act 1995

2020 Act

The Children (Scotland) Act 2020

Care Inspectorate

Set up in 2010 as Social Care and Social Work Improvement Scotland the Care Inspectorate is a scrutiny body which supports improvement. It looks at the quality of care in Scotland to ensure it meets high standards and where improvement is needed, it supports services to make positive changes.

Child

Defined in sections 1(2) and 2(7) of the 1995 Act as a person under the age of 16 years for the purposes of parental responsibilities and rights apart from in relation to parents providing guidance where "child" means a person under the age of 18 years.

Child contact centre

Child contact centres are safe venues for parents, and other people in the child's life, to establish or maintain conflict-free relationships with their children. A child contact centre is any premises in Scotland at which face to face child contact services are provided. For the purpose of this consultation a child contact centre is a place that deals primarily with separated parents and families who are referred in private law cases.

Child contact services

Child contact services are provided by child contact centre providers. These services include supervised contact, supported contact and handover services. Providers may as necessary also provide services that are not face to face, for example, online contact sessions or "letterbox" services.

Contact order

An order made under section 11 of the 1995 Act for contact between one person and a child or children.

EHRC

Equality and Human Rights Commission. The national equality body responsible for safeguarding and enforcing the laws that protect people's rights to fairness, dignity and respect.

Handovers

A facility where the contact service facilitates a child going from one parent to another for a specified period of time and, after that time, returning to the first parent (a form of supported contact).

LGBTQ+

Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Questioning, Intersex, Allies, Asexual and Pansexual

Relationships Scotland

Scotland's largest provider of relationship counselling, family mediation and child contact centre services.

Sheriff

A judge in the Sheriff Court. Sheriffs deal with the majority of civil (including family) and criminal cases in Scotland.

SSSC

Scottish Social Services Council. The regulator for the social service workforce in Scotland.

Supervised contact

Contact taking place in the constant presence of an independent person who observes and ensures the safety of those involved.

Supported contact

Contact where there is no significant risk to the child and therefore child contact centres only record that the contact took place and not details of how it went.

UNCRC

United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child