Statutory guidance on Part 9 (Corporate Parenting) of the Children and Young People (Scotland) Act 2014

Section 64: Directions to Corporate Parents

140. A corporate parent must comply with any direction issued by Scottish Ministers. These directions can relate to how a corporate parent has fulfilled their duties under section 58 (corporate parenting responsibilities) and how they have exercised their other corporate parenting functions ( i.e. planning, collaborating reporting, etc.) under Part 9 of the Act.

141. Directions may be issued under the powers provided to Scottish Ministers by section 64 of the Act. Before issuing, revising or revoking a direction, Scottish Minsters must consult with any corporate parent to whom it relates, and any other persons they consider appropriate.

142. Under section 56(4), the Commissioner for Children and Young People in Scotland ( SCCYP) and a body which is a "post-16 education body" for the purposes of the Further and Higher Education (Scotland) Act 2005, are not corporate parents for the purposes of section 64. This means that they are not subject to the duty to comply with a direction issued by Scottish Ministers. However this exemption only applies to directions issued under section 64; relevant Ministerial Orders issued under sections 56, 57 and 58, and guidance issued under section 63, should be complied with in full.