Jersey Law 51/2002
DAY CARE OF CHILDREN (JERSEY) LAW 2002
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A LAW to make new provision for the
regulation of the care of children for short periods and for connected
purposes; sanctioned by Order of Her Majesty in Council of the
20th day of NOVEMBER 2002
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(Registered on the 13th day of December 2002)
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STATES OF JERSEY
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The 26th day of February 2002
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THE STATES, subject
to the sanction of Her Most Excellent Majesty in Council, have adopted the
following Law -
ARTICLE 1
Interpretation
(1) In this Law, unless the context otherwise
requires -
“Committee” means the Education
Committee;
“day care accommodation” means any
place where children under the age of 12 years are looked after for reward for
a period or periods the total of which exceeds two hours in any day and six
days in any calendar year and which is not -
(a) wholly
or mainly used as a private dwelling;
(b) a
place (such as a supermarket or hotel crèche) where the parents of, or other
persons who normally care for, those children are not expected to leave the
vicinity while the children are being looked after; or
(c) a
place which, in respect of those children, is operating as a school, hospital,
nursing home, mental nursing home, residential care home or voluntary home;
“day carer” means a person -
(a) who
looks after one or more children under the age of 12 years in his home or
other place wholly or mainly used as a private dwelling for reward;
(b) who
looks after any such child for a period or periods the total of which exceeds
two hours in any day and six days in any calendar year; and
(c) who
is not -
(i) a parent or relative of, or person with
parental responsibility for, all such children,
(ii) a Committee foster parent of all such
children nor is fostering them privately, and
(iii) employed as a nanny for all such children by
a parent of, or other person who normally cares for, those children and who is
looking after the children wholly or mainly in the home of his employer;
“premises” means day care
accommodation or the place where a day carer looks after, or proposes to look
after, any children.
(2) Words and phrases used in this Law shall,
unless the context otherwise requires, have the same respective meanings as in
the Children (Jersey) Law 2002.
(3) A reference in this Law to an Article by
number only, and without further identification, is a reference to the Article
of that number in this Law and a reference in an Article or other division of this
Law to a paragraph by number only, and without further identification, is a
reference to the paragraph of that number in the Article or other division of
this Law.
(4) Unless the context otherwise requires, a
reference in this Law to an enactment is a reference to that enactment as
amended from time to time and includes a reference to that enactment as
extended or applied under another enactment, including another provision of
this Law.
ARTICLE 2
Registration of day care accommodation and day carers
(1) The Committee shall keep registers of day
care accommodation and day carers and such registers shall be open to
inspection at all times.
(2) Any person -
(a) looking after or proposing to look after
any children in day care accommodation; or
(b) acting or proposing to act as a day carer,
shall apply for registration under
this Article in such manner and accompanied by such particulars as the
Committee may require, and on receipt of such application the Committee shall,
subject to the provisions of this Article, register the accommodation or person
as the case may be.
(3) Where a day carer registered under this
Article changes premises, his registration shall cease to have effect unless
and until he is re-registered in accordance with this Article.
(4) The Committee may refuse an application for
registration under this Article if it is satisfied that -
(a) the premises are not fit to be used for
looking after children, whether because of the condition of the premises, the
adequacy of any equipment used on the premises, or for any reason connected
with the situation, construction or size of the premises;
(b) the applicant or any person looking after,
or likely to be looking after, any children on the premises is not fit to look
after children;
(c) any person living or working, or likely to
be living or working, on the premises is not fit to be in the proximity of
children.
(5) The Committee may, in its absolute
discretion -
(a) grant exemption from the provisions of this
Article;
(b) attach to any such exemption such
conditions as it thinks fit; and
(c) vary such conditions at any time or
withdraw the exemption.
ARTICLE
3
Disqualification
A
person who is disqualified for the purposes of Article 54(2) or Article 62 of
the Children (Jersey) Law 2002 by virtue of Schedule 4 to that Law
shall not -
(a) look after a child in day care
accommodation or be concerned in the management of or have a financial interest
in such accommodation;
(b) employ a person to look after children in
day care accommodation; or
(c) act as a day carer,
unless he has disclosed the
disqualification to the Committee and obtained its consent.
ARTICLE 4
Power to impose requirements in respect of day care accommodation and
day carers
(1) Where the Committee registers an
application under Article 2, it may impose any or all of the following
requirements -
(a) specify the maximum number of children, or
the maximum number of children within specified age groups, who may be looked
after (having regard to the number of other children who may at any time be on
the premises);
(b) require the applicant to secure that the
premises and the equipment used on the premises, are adequately maintained and
kept safe;
(c) require the applicant to keep records in
relation to the children received, and persons living or working, at the
premises containing such particulars as it may specify; and
(d) specify the training and qualifications to
be possessed by the day carer or any person employed at day care accommodation;
(e) in the case of day care accommodation -
(i) specify the number of persons who may be
employed at that accommodation,
(ii) require to be kept informed of the persons
there employed, their names, addresses, training and qualifications, and the
facilities provided and the period during which they are provided; and
(f) impose such other requirements as to the
health and welfare of children being looked after as it considers appropriate.
(2) The Committee may at any time vary any
requirement imposed under this Article, impose any additional requirement or
remove any requirement.
ARTICLE 5
Certificates of registration
(1) Where the Committee registers a person
under Article 2 it shall issue him with a certificate of registration.
(2) The certificate -
(a) shall specify the address of the premises
and, in the case of a day carer, his name and address; and
(b) shall be accompanied by any requirement
imposed under Article 4.
(3) Where, due to a change of circumstances,
any part of the certificate requires to be amended, the Committee shall issue
an amended certificate.
(4) The certificate of registration shall be
displayed in a prominent position in the premises in which any child is to be
looked after and produced or delivered to the Committee when so required.
ARTICLE 6
Fees
(1) The Committee may charge such fees as it may prescribe by Order
for or in connection with any registration or application for registration
under this Law and the issuing of certificates of registration, and such fees
may be prescribed on any basis, including an annual or other periodic basis.
(2) The Subordinate Legislation (Jersey) Law 1960 shall apply to Orders made under
this Article.
ARTICLE 7
Cancellation of registration
The
Committee may at any time cancel any registration under Article 2 if -
(a) it appears to it that the circumstances of
the case are such that it would be justified in refusing to register the day
care accommodation or day carer concerned;
(b) the care provided at such accommodation or,
by such day carer, is, in the Committee’s opinion, seriously inadequate having
regard to the needs of the children concerned;
(c) there has been a contravention of, or
non-compliance with, any requirement imposed under Article 4; or
(d) there has been a failure to pay any fee
charged under Article 6.
ARTICLE
8
Notice of decisions
(1) Not less than 14 days before -
(a) refusing an application for registration
under Article 2;
(b) cancelling any such registration;
(c) refusing consent under Article 3;
(d) imposing, removing or varying any
requirement under Article 4; or
(e) refusing to grant any application for the
variation or removal of any such requirement,
the Committee shall send to the applicant,
to the occupier of the accommodation to which the registration relates or to
the day carer registered, as the case may be, notice in writing of its
intention to do so and the reasons for its decision.
(2) Every notice under paragraph (1) shall inform
the addressee of his right to object to the decision by giving written notice
to the Committee within 14 days of receipt of the notice, and where he does so,
the Committee shall give him the opportunity to be heard in person or by a
representative.
(3) If the Committee, after having complied
with paragraph (2), nevertheless decides to take any of the steps
described in paragraph (1), it shall give the person concerned written
notice of its decision and inform him of his right to appeal under Article 9.
ARTICLE 9
Appeals
(1) A person aggrieved by a decision under Article 8(3) may, within
one month from the receiving notice of that decision, appeal to the Royal Court on the
ground that the decision is unreasonable in all the circumstances of the case.
(2) Where the court allows an appeal against
the refusal or cancellation of any registration under Article 2 it may
impose requirements under Article 4.
(3) Where the court allows an appeal against
such a requirement it may, instead of cancelling the requirement, vary it.
(4) Where the court imposes or varies any
requirement under paragraph (2) or (3) the requirement, or the requirement as
varied, shall be treated for all purposes (other than this Article) as if it
had been imposed by the Committee.
(5) A step of a kind mentioned in Article
8(1)(b) or (d) shall not take effect until the expiry of the time within which
an appeal may be brought under this Article or, where such an appeal is
brought, before its determination.
ARTICLE 10
Protection of children in an emergency
(1) Where the Committee cancels a registration
under Article 7, varies or removes a requirement imposed under Article 4
or imposes an additional requirement under that Article, it may apply to the
court for an order that such cancellation, variation, removal or imposition
shall have immediate effect.
(2) An application under paragraph (1) may be
made ex parte and shall be supported
by a written statement of the Committee’s reasons for making it.
(3) The court may make an order under this
Article if it is satisfied that a child who is being, or who may be, looked
after by the day carer or at the day care accommodation concerned, as the case
may be, is suffering, or is likely to suffer, significant harm.
(4) Where an order is made under this Article
the Committee shall serve on the registered person, as soon as is reasonably
practicable, notice of the order and a copy of the statement of its reasons for
making the application.
ARTICLE 11
Power of entry and inspection
Any
officer of the Committee may, subject to the production by him of evidence of
his authority, at all reasonable times enter any premises and inspect -
(a) the premises;
(b) the children being looked after on the
premises;
(c) the arrangements made for the welfare of
such children; and
(d) any records relating to them kept as a
result of this Law.
ARTICLE 12
Offences
A
person who -
(a) allows children to be received into day
care accommodation which is not registered or exempted under Article 2;
(b) acts as a day carer without being so
registered or exempted;
(c) contravenes Article 3;
(d) makes, or causes or procures another person
to make, any statement in an application for registration under Article 2 which
he knows to be false or misleading in a material particular;
(e) without reasonable excuse contravenes or
fails to comply with -
(i) a requirement imposed on him under Article
4,
(ii) a condition attached to an exemption
granted under Article 2(5), or
(iii) the provisions of Article 5(4); or
(f) intentionally obstructs an officer of the
Committee exercising his powers under Article 11,
shall be liable to a fine not exceeding level 3
on the standard scale.
ARTICLE 13
Transitional provision
Any registration effected under
Article 68 of the Children (Jersey) Law 1969 which, had this Law been in force
at the time of such registration, could have been effected under this Law,
shall, on and after the commencement of this Law, have effect as if made under
Article 2, and any requirement imposed under Article 69 of that Law with respect to such registration
shall have effect as if it were imposed under Article 4.
ARTICLE 14
Citation and commencement
This
Law may be cited as the Day Care of Children (Jersey)
Law 2002 and shall come into force on such day as the States may by Act
appoint.
C.M.
NEWCOMBE
Greffier of the States.