Last amended by Adoption and Children Act (Northern Ireland) 2022 (2022 c. 18 (N.I.)) in 2022. Prospectively repeals ss.9–12 and parts of s.17 in their application to Northern Ireland; legislation.gov.uk records these changes as not yet applied as at 1 August 2026.
Independent editorial summary — not the official statute text. Read the official version on legislation.gov.uk.
Summary
The Children and Adoption Act 2006 strengthened the courts' powers to facilitate and enforce contact between children and parents, and created controls on adoptions from abroad. Part 1 works by inserting new provisions into the Children Act 1989: contact activity directions and conditions (ss.11A–11G, e.g. parenting programmes and information sessions), CAFCASS monitoring of compliance (s.11H), warning notices attached to orders (s.11I), enforcement orders imposing unpaid work requirements for breach without reasonable excuse (ss.11J–11N and Schedule A1), compensation for financial loss caused by breach (ss.11O–11P), more flexible family assistance orders, and a duty on CAFCASS officers to carry out risk assessments where they suspect a child is at risk of harm (s.16A). Since the Children and Families Act 2014 these provisions operate in relation to child arrangements orders. Part 2 allows the Secretary of State to declare 'special restrictions' on bringing children into the UK from countries of concern in intercountry adoption (used, for example, for Cambodia, Guatemala, Nepal, Haiti and Ethiopia); sections 9–12 are prospectively repealed for Northern Ireland by the Adoption and Children Act (Northern Ireland) 2022, a change legislation.gov.uk records as not yet applied.
Key Points
- Contact activity directions and conditions: courts can require attendance at programmes, classes, counselling or information sessions to promote contact (s.1, inserting ss.11A–11G Children Act 1989)
- CAFCASS can be asked to monitor compliance with contact provisions and report to the court (s.2, inserting s.11H)
- Warning notices must be attached to orders, spelling out the consequences of breach (s.3, inserting s.11I)
- Enforcement orders: unpaid work requirements (40–200 hours) for breach without reasonable excuse, proved to the criminal standard (s.4, inserting ss.11J–11N and Schedule A1)
- Compensation for financial loss caused by breach (e.g. a lost holiday) (s.5, inserting ss.11O–11P)
- Family assistance orders made more flexible: consent of the child no longer required, maximum duration extended to 12 months (s.6)
- Risk assessments: CAFCASS officers must assess and report where they suspect a child is at risk of harm (s.7, inserting s.16A)
- Part 2: special restrictions on adoptions from 'restricted' countries, with case-by-case exceptions and a power to charge for handling cases (ss.9–14)
- Terminology now operates on child arrangements orders following the Children and Families Act 2014
Amendments History
2014 — Children and Families Act 2014
Replaced contact and residence orders with the child arrangements order; the enforcement machinery inserted by the 2006 Act (ss.11A–11P Children Act 1989) was retained and now applies to child arrangements orders.
2022 — Adoption and Children Act (Northern Ireland) 2022 (2022 c. 18 (N.I.))
Prospectively repeals ss.9–12 and parts of s.17 in their application to Northern Ireland; legislation.gov.uk records these changes as not yet applied as at 1 August 2026.