This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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National pilot planned for parenting orders
03/12/2004
A national pilot of parenting orders will get underway in April, it was announced today.
The orders are designed to compel parents to accept support if they have failed to accept help voluntarily.
Research shows that children are twice as likely to offend if they have low or medium levels of parental supervision, compared with those who experience high levels of parenting.
Education and Young People Minister Peter Peacock said:
"Poor parenting can be a major factor in youth offending as lack of parental supervision means children are more likely to commit crime.
"However, we know that most parents want to do the best for their children and we will support them in their efforts.
"We will provide £2 million a year of antisocial behaviour funding to help local authorities improve and expand their support services for parents and their families.
"Parenting orders are not designed to penalise parents who acknowledge their shortcomings and accept the support on offer.
"Nor are they designed to punish parents for their children's offences.
"What parenting orders will do is compel parents to accept help and support, in a bid to equip them with the skills they need to adequately care for and supervise their children."
Guidance will be issued to councils advising them of their additional funding and how, and when, parenting orders could be used before the three-year pilot begins.
At the end of the pilot period, statutory guidance on the operation of parenting orders will be issued.
One research study (Graham and Bowling 1995: Young People and Crime Home Office) showed that 42 per cent of children with low or medium levels of parental supervision had offended, compared to 20 per cent of those who experienced high levels of parenting.
The pilot will run for three years from April 4, 2005. From that date, local authorities and children's panel reporters will have the power to apply for a parenting order where the need is identified and the parent has refused to engage voluntarily with the help and support offered.
In 2004-05, £1 million will go to local authorities to help prepare for the pilot and £2 million a year will support the pilot itself.
Funds for 2004-05 and 2005-06 are drawn from the £35 million for youth justice in the antisocial behaviour funding announced last year.
Parenting orders were introduced under the Antisocial Behaviour (Scotland) Act 2004 for parents who deliberately or recklessly fail their children and have failed to engage with help and support on a voluntary basis.
Parenting orders concern the behaviour of the parent, not the child, and can be made in cases where children have come to the attention of the hearings system on offending or welfare grounds.
Parenting orders will be applied for by the local authority or children's panel reporter and granted by the Sheriff Court. The sheriff must be satisfied that the parenting order would be in the child's best interests.
The order will last for a year, unless extended, and parents will have to comply with the requirements set out in it. They will normally be required to attend counselling or guidance.
The Antisocial Behaviour Act provides that the penalty for breaching an order will be a fine. If that is not paid, a Supervised Attendance Order will be imposed. Only if that is not complied with do other sentencing disposals become available.