Children Act 1989, section 31

Care and Supervision

Part IV Care and Supervision

(1)On the application of any local authority or authorised person, the court may make an order—

(a)placing the child with respect to whom the application is made in the care of a designated local authority; or

(b)F534putting him under the supervision of a designated local authority . . ..

(2)A court may only make a care order or supervision order if it is satisfied—

(a)that the child concerned is suffering, or is likely to suffer, significant harm; and

(b)that the harm, or likelihood of harm, is attributable to—

(i)the care given to the child, or likely to be given to him if the order were not made, not being what it would be reasonable to expect a parent to give to him; or

(ii)the child’s being beyond parental control.

(3)No care order or supervision order may be made with respect to a child who has reached the age of seventeen (or sixteen, in the case of a child who is married).

[F535 (3A)A court deciding whether to make a care order—

(a)is required to consider the permanence provisions of the section 31A plan for the child concerned, but

(b)is not required to consider the remainder of the section 31A plan, subject to section 34(11).

[F536 (3B)For the purposes of subsection (3A), the permanence provisions of a section 31A plan are—

(a)such of the plan's provisions setting out the long-term plan for the upbringing of the child concerned as provide for any of the following—

(i)the child to live with any parent of the child's or with any other member of, or any friend of, the child's family;

(ii)adoption;

(iii)long-term care not within sub-paragraph (i) or (ii);

(b)such of the plan's provisions as set out any of the following—

(i)the impact on the child concerned of any harm that he or she suffered or was likely to suffer;

(ii)the current and future needs of the child (including needs arising out of that impact);

(iii)the way in which the long-term plan for the upbringing of the child would meet those current and future needs.F536]

(3C)The Secretary of State may by regulations amend this section for the purpose of altering what for the purposes of subsection (3A) are the permanence provisions of a section 31A plan.F535]

(4)An application under this section may be made on its own or in any other family proceedings.

(5)The court may—

(a)on an application for a care order, make a supervision order;

(b)on an application for a supervision order, make a care order.

(6)Where an authorised person proposes to make an application under this section he shall—

(a)if it is reasonably practicable to do so; and

(b)before making the application,

consult the local authority appearing to him to be the authority in whose area the child concerned is ordinarily resident.

(7)An application made by an authorised person shall not be entertained by the court if, at the time when it is made, the child concerned is—

(a)the subject of an earlier application for a care order, or supervision order, which has not been disposed of; or

(b)subject to—

(i)a care order or supervision order;

[F537 (ii)a youth rehabilitation order within [F538 the meaning given by section 173 of the Sentencing CodeF538] ; orF537]

[F539 (iii) a compulsory supervision order or interim compulsory supervision order as defined by sections 83 and 86 of the Children’s Hearings (Scotland) Act 2011. F539]

(8)The local authority designated in a care order must be—

(a)the authority within whose area the child is ordinarily resident; or

(b)where the child does not reside in the area of a local authority, the authority within whose area any circumstances arose in consequence of which the order is being made.

(9)In this section—

  • “authorised person” means—

    (a)

    the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children and any of its officers; and

    (b)

    any person authorised by order of the Secretary of State to bring proceedings under this section and any officer of a body which is so authorised;

  • “harm” means ill-treatment or the impairment of health or development[F540 including, for example, impairment suffered from seeing or hearing the ill-treatment of another F540] ;

  • “development” means physical, intellectual, emotional, social or behavioural development;

  • “health” means physical or mental health; and

  • “ill-treatment” includes sexual abuse and forms of ill-treatment which are not physical.

(10)Where the question of whether harm suffered by a child is significant turns on the child’s health or development, his health or development shall be compared with that which could reasonably be expected of a similar child.

(11)In this Act—

  • “a care order” means (subject to section 105(1)) an order under subsection (1)(a) and (except where express provision to the contrary is made) includes an interim care order made under section 38; and

  • “a supervision order” means an order under subsection (1)(b) and (except where express provision to the contrary is made) includes an interim supervision order made under section 38.

Definitions used in section 31 12

local authority

“local authority” means, in relation to England ..., the council of a county, a metropolitan district, a London Borough or the Common Council of the City of London in relation to Wales, the council of a county or a county borough and, in relation to Scotland, a local authority within the meaning of section 1(2) of the Social Work (Scotland) Act 1968 ;

Defined in s.105(1) · see it in the full Act
the court

(7) For the purposes of this Act “the court” means the High Court or the family court .

Defined in s.92(7) · see it in the full Act
the order

(a) an order under paragraph 1(2)(a) or (b) for the making or securing of periodical payments in favour of more than one child (“the order") is in force;

Defined in Sch.1 para.6(9) · see it in the full Act
child

16 (1) In this Schedule “child” includes, in any case where an application is made under paragraph 2 or 6 in relation to a person who has reached the age of eighteen, that person.

Defined in Sch.1 para.16(1) · see it in the full Act

“child” means, subject to paragraph 16 of Schedule 1, a person under the age of eighteen;

Defined in s.105(1) · see it in the full Act
care order

“care order” has the meaning given by section 31(11) and also includes any order which by or under any enactment has the effect of, or is deemed to be, a care order for the purposes of this Act; and any reference to a child who is in the care of an authority is a reference to a child who is in their care by virtue of a care order;

Defined in s.105(1) · see it in the full Act
supervision order

“supervision order” has the meaning given by section 31(11);

Defined in s.105(1) · see it in the full Act
harm

“harm” has the same meaning as in section 31(9) and the question of whether harm is significant shall be determined in accordance with section 31(10);

Defined in s.105(1) · see it in the full Act
parent

(2) In this Schedule, except paragraphs 2 and 15, “parent” includes—

(a) any party to a marriage (whether or not subsisting) in relation to whom the child concerned is a child of the family, and

(b) any civil partner in a civil partnership (whether or not subsisting) in relation to whom the child concerned is a child of the family;

Defined in Sch.1 para.16(2) · see it in the full Act

21 In this Part of this Schedule “parent” has the same meaning as in the Education Act 1996 . ).

Defined in Sch.3 para.21 · see it in the full Act
section 31A plan

“section 31A plan” has the meaning given by section 31A(6);

Defined in s.105(1) · see it in the full Act
upbringing

“upbringing”, in relation to any child, includes the care of the child but not his maintenance;

Defined in s.105(1) · see it in the full Act
family proceedings

“family proceedings” has the meaning given by section 8(3);

Defined in s.105(1) · see it in the full Act

(3) For the purposes of this Act “family proceedings” means any proceedings—

(a)under the inherent jurisdiction of the High Court in relation to children; and

(b)under the enactments mentioned in subsection (4),

Defined in s.8(3) · see it in the full Act
ill-treatment

“ill-treatment” has the same meaning as in section 31(9);

Defined in s.105(1) · see it in the full Act

Cases considering section 31 642

The Father v Worcestershire County Council

[2025] UKSC 1 · 29 January 2025Interprets

Care proceedings must be commenced by a local authority or authorised person. The application was in fact made by the county council, so the requirement was satisfied (see paras [5]-[6]). The provision supplies the significant-harm threshold for a care order. Whether the threshold was met was a factual merits question for appeal, not a precedent fact permitting habeas corpus to challenge the Family Court’s jurisdiction (see paras [16]; [71]; [84]).

HXA v Surrey County Council

[2023] UKSC 52 · 20 December 2023Interprets

Section 31 provides for court-authorised care and supervision orders. It was contrasted with consensual section 20 accommodation and identified as the route by which an authority may obtain parental responsibility. (see paras [30], [35], [40], [91]) A care or supervision order requires actual or likely significant harm attributable to deficient parental care. Child-protection assessments may be undertaken to determine whether this threshold is met. (see paras [30]-[31], [93])

R (on the application of Pearce and another) v Parole Board of England and Wales

[2023] UKSC 13 · 5 April 2023Interprets

The provision creates protective threshold conditions which must be satisfied before a care order can be considered. Its language and policy require the factual foundation for predicted significant harm to be proved, but that special rule does not govern parole risk assessment. (See paras [47]–[58]; [63]–[64].) The phrase requiring the court to be satisfied that a child is suffering or likely to suffer significant harm uses the language of proof. Its construction reflects the provision’s protective purpose and supplies no universal binary rule. (See paras [33]–[38]; [48]–[58].)

622 more judgments, and what each says about section 31, are in the case-law panel in the full Act.

Amendments and notes

12 notes from legislation.gov.uk

Amendments

  1. F534Words in s. 31(1)(b) repealed (1.4.2001) by 2000 c. 43, ss. 74, 75, Sch. 7 Pt. II para. 90, Sch. 8; S.I. 2001/919, art. 2(f)(ii)(g)
  2. F535S. 31(3A)-(3C) substituted for s. 31(3A) (22.4.2014) by Children and Families Act 2014 (c. 6), ss. 15(1), 139(6); S.I. 2014/889, art. 4(d) (with transitional provisions in S.I. 2014/1042, arts. 3, 4, 6-10) this amendment is subject to savings and/or transitional provisions, see the commentary.
  3. F536S. 31(3B) substituted (31.10.2017) by Children and Social Work Act 2017 (c. 16), ss. 8, 70(2); S.I. 2017/918, reg. 2(a)
  4. F537S. 31(7)(b)(ii) substituted (30.11.2009) by Criminal Justice and Immigration Act 2008 (c. 4), ss. 6, 153, Sch. 4 para. 35 (with Sch. 27 paras. 1, 5); S.I. 2009/3074, art. 2(p)(v)
  5. F538Words in s. 31(7)(b)(ii) substituted (1.12.2020) by Sentencing Act 2020 (c. 17), s. 416(1), Sch. 24 para. 109 (with Sch. 27); S.I. 2020/1236, reg. 2
  6. F539S. 31(7)(b)(iii) substituted (24.6.2013) by The Children’s Hearings (Scotland) Act 2011 (Consequential and Transitional Provisions and Savings) Order 2013 (S.I. 2013/1465), art. 1(2), Sch. 1 para. 2(2)
  7. F540S. 31(9): words in definition of "harm" inserted (31.1.2005) by 2002 c. 38, ss. 120, 148 (with Sch. 4 paras. 6-8); S.I. 2004/3203, art. 2(2)

Modifications

  1. C37S. 31 applied (14.10.1991) by S.I. 1991/2032, art. 3(1).
  2. C38S. 31 modified (1.11.2012) by Parental Responsibility and Measures for the Protection of Children (International Obligations) (England and Wales and Northern Ireland) Regulations 2010 (S.I. 2010/1898), regs. 1(2), 5(3)(a)
  3. C39S. 31(1)(a) extended (30.9.1998) by 1998 c. 37, s. 12(6)(a)(7); S.I. 1998/2327, art. 2(1)(c) (subject to arts. 5-8)
  4. C40S. 31(2) modified (30.9.1998) by 1998 c. 37, s. 12(7); S.I. 1998/2327, art. 2(1)(c) (subject to arts. 5-8).

Commencement

  1. I28S. 31 wholly in force at 14.10.1991 see s. 108(2)(3) and S.I. 1991/828, art. 3(2)