The Scottish Ministers have made regulations bringing six provisions of the Children (Care and Justice) (Scotland) Act 2024 into force on 1 December 2026, covering trauma in children’s hearings, movement restriction conditions and secure accommodation.
The Children (Care and Justice) (Scotland) Act 2024 (Commencement No. 4) Regulations 2026 (SSI 2026/335) were made on 10 November and laid before the Scottish Parliament on 12 November.
They are made under the commencement power in section 38(3) of the 2024 Act. Regulation 1 sets the date of 1 December 2026 for the instrument itself, and regulation 2 appoints the same day for the listed provisions.
Section 2(3), which concerns the children’s hearing and the duty to have regard to the effects of trauma on the child, is brought into force in full.
Section 6(3), on compulsory supervision orders and movement restriction conditions, is also commenced without limitation.
The remaining four entries are commenced only in part, and only for stated purposes.
Section 3(7), on emergency placement of a child in secure accommodation, is commenced only so that the Scottish Ministers can make regulations under section 57B of the Children’s Hearings (Scotland) Act 2011, which that subsection inserts. Section 3(1) is commenced only for its application to that amendment.
Section 27(2), (3) and (4), on secure accommodation services, are commenced only so that ministers can make regulations under section 78A of the Public Services Reform (Scotland) Act 2010 about the approval of secure accommodation services. Section 27(1) is commenced only for its application to those amendments.
The effect is that the powers to make the emergency placement and approval regulations exist from 1 December. The Explanatory Note does not say when any such regulations will be made.
Earlier commencement steps run from August 2024
The Bill received Royal Assent on 4 June 2024. Sections 35, 36, 38 and 39 came into force the following day, and section 33 on 16 July 2024.
The first commencement regulations, SSI 2024/211, took effect on 28 August 2024. They brought into force section 18 (remand and committal of children before trial or sentence), section 19 (detention of children on conviction) and section 22 (abolition of remand centres).
The same regulations commenced section 23, the duty of a local authority to provide residential establishments for detained children, and section 24, under which children detained in secure accommodation are treated as “looked after” children.
SSI 2025/115 followed on 5 May 2025 with section 32 (named person and child’s plan) and section 34 (review of the Act).
On 1 September 2025 it commenced section 25 (standards for secure transportation) and sections 29 and 30 on cross-border placements, along with section 28(1), (3) and (5) on regulation of care services providing residential accommodation to children.
SSI 2025/379 commenced section 9, support for victims in children’s hearings, on 15 December 2025. On 30 March it commenced section 15, on custody of children before proceedings begin, and section 16, on steps to safeguard the welfare and safety of children in criminal proceedings.
Section 1 (age of referral to children’s hearings) and section 12 (meaning of “child”) have been commenced in stages for their application to particular provisions of the Criminal Procedure (Scotland) Act 1995, on 28 August 2024, 5 May 2025 and 30 March.
The instrument is signed for the Scottish Ministers by Siobhian Brown.