The Children (Scotland) Act 1995 in the context of the Human Rights Act 1998

The Children (Scotland) Act 1995 in the context of the Human Rights Act 1998

★★★★

Fergus Smith and Professor Tina Lyon

Children Act Enterprises

ISBN 9781899986224

This begins with an invaluable section dealing with definitions and principles relating to the act.

The act is laid out in its private and public law elements with the latter sub-divided and indexed relating to sections dealing with the children’s hearing system and protection and supervision.

Its main strength is the fact that each section of the act is made as reader-friendly as possible and additional notes to aid understanding are included, as is reference to key case law. The act is then set within the context of the Human Rights Act and the European Convention of Human Rights and its protocols.

As a whole the book does what it sets out to do while striving to remain compact and readable. It would have helped to have some of the case law described but this would have taken away from the overall aim to be compact and user-friendly.

Review by Iain McDonald, locum social worker, Midlothian Council