Child Care

The Department has produced a document setting out the main aspects of the law in relation to Child Care in Northern Ireland.

This section of the Child Care Policy Directorate website contains the Guidance and Regulations produced by the Department in the context of The Children (Northern Ireland) Order 1995.

The Regulations and Guidance in this series build upon the legislative framework of The Children (Northern Ireland) Order 1995. The Regulations made under the Children Order include permissions and restrictions as to what may or may not be done and also requirements on what must be done. As with the Children Order itself, the Regulations carry the full weight of the law. The guidance issued under the Children Order is not law, but rather what the Department considers to be good practice.

The Children Order series of Regulations and Guidance consists of the following:

*Published May 2003 and replaces previous Volume 6: Co-operating to Protect Children

This section also includes leaflets, available shortly on this site, produced by the Department to explain aspects of the Children Order.