Child Care (Amendment) Act 2024
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Immediate action notice and immediate action order | ||
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12. The Principal Act is amended by the insertion of the following section after section 58JA (inserted by section 11 ): | ||
“58JB. (1) Where an authorised person is of the opinion, following the exercise of any of his or her powers under section 58J relating to a premises in which a registered provider is providing a prescribed early years service, that immediate action is required by the registered provider in order to address an issue that poses an immediate risk of harm to a child attending the service, he or she may issue a notice (in this Part referred to as an ‘immediate action notice’). | ||
(2) An immediate action notice shall— | ||
(a) identify the issue that poses an immediate risk of harm referred to in subsection (1), | ||
(b) require that action be taken to address the issue referred to in paragraph (a) and, if appropriate, specify the nature or details of such remedial action, and | ||
(c) specify a time limit by which the action referred to in paragraph (b) is to be completed or implemented by the registered provider. | ||
(3) An immediate action notice shall be served on the registered provider of the prescribed early years service to which it relates or the person in charge of the premises from which that service is provided and shall be effective immediately or, as appropriate, from a date specified in the notice. | ||
(4) An immediate action notice may be varied or withdrawn. | ||
(5) Where an immediate action notice has not been complied with or the authorised person has reasonable grounds to believe that it has not been complied with, the Agency may apply to the District Court for an immediate action order. | ||
(6) A judge of the District Court may, on application in that behalf by the Agency, where the judge is of the opinion that an immediate action notice has not been complied with or that there are reasonable grounds for the authorised person’s belief that it has not been complied with, make an order (in this Part referred to as an ‘immediate action order’) directing the registered provider to comply with the immediate action notice. | ||
(7) An immediate action order shall specify— | ||
(a) the action required to be taken by the registered provider, | ||
(b) a time limit by which the action referred to in paragraph (a) is to be completed or implemented by the registered provider, and | ||
(c) such other requirement, if any, as the court may consider appropriate.”. |