The Stage

Proper guidance needed

Published Monday 19 November 2007 at 13:55

I refer to your article on Stagecoach launching a petition supporting children in the arts (October 25, page 5).

Doncaster Metropolitan Borough Council cannot even present a consistent view on Children’s Performance Licences. For example, in its table on child performance criteria, the last column states as to whether a licence is required or not, but the council document on the web for internal purposes (intranet), called Child Performances Licences, states that any child which engages in performances must have a licence issued by the local authority.

These two statements contradict each other in that the table claims that a licence is sometimes not required, but on the other hand, the document held on the intranet claims a licence is always necessary.

Doncaster Council cannot even agree to produce a consistent statement to fulfil its legal obligations and requirements under the relevant legislation, which includes the Children’s and Young Persons Act, 1933, Children’s and Young Persons Act, 1963, the Children (Performance) Regulations, 1968 and the Children (Performance) (Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations, 1998, amongst those cited by Doncaster Council.

They do not quote all the relevant legislation on each document, so Council Watch UK has had to compile the list by collating information from all the sources available to ourselves. But the requirements for a licence include the requirement for the informed consent of a parent or legal guardian, but fails to recognise the Children’s Act 1989, et al, which defines (primarily for the purposes of the courts) as to who the guardian would be. Therefore, it is necessary that the question of guardianship could be resolved so that the correct person is able to sign the consent form. The 1989 Act also sets out the relevant orders for “care and supervision” and protection of children which have a relevancy as to the rights and responsibilities of any person who chaperones a minor. Doncaster Council cannot get this right either.

The whole of the relevant legislation needs to be properly looked at by an independent, competent person, such as a mathematician or a philosopher specialising in logic, to weed out all the errors and omissions. Doncaster Council has an appalling history of getting things wrong, hence so many challenges in the High Court. Since 1997, this council has had four heads of paid service, and since August 2006, Doncaster has only had in place an interim managing director.

A head teacher or a doctor who signs in their professional capacity an Application for a Child Performance Licence may render themselves liable to prosecution if they misrepresent facts on any document which they have signed or caused to be signed in their absence, even though the said document(s) are either wrong in representing any fact(s) of the matter or in misrepresenting the requirements for a licence.

This kind of misrepresentation is what Stagecoach’s petition is all about, in that it is a reaction to the way various councils have implemented the children’s licences and the inconsistencies in their approach. Stagecoach is to be commended for trying to bring this to the public’s attention, but this needs wider publicity, it ought not to be ring-fenced to those employed in television, theatre, etc. Council Watch UK’s remit is to look at local authorities and how they implement government policy. Our concern is, again, with implementation and not with the original intention espoused and described by the acts of parliament. The view of Council Watch UK is that some proper guidance should have been issued by central government at the time the acts were enacted. This kind of approach is something that Ed Vaizey MP, the Shadow Culture Minister, should adopt.

Council Watch UK has now mounted its own campaign in this matter and its subsidiary, Doncaster Council Watch, will be holding a public meeting, in which this will be an item on the agenda, on December 1, commencing at 2.15pm until 4pm, at Doncaster Central Library, Waterdale, Doncaster, to be chaired by activist Joffre Sprakes. Martin Winter, the elected mayor at Doncaster, has been asked to answer a 100-word question in connection with Children’s Performance Licences at the next full council meeting at the Mansion House, High Street, Doncaster, on December 3 at 10am. The agenda for this will be available for inspection on November 23.

Ray Nortrop

Council Watch UK

Doncaster

South Yorkshire