UNCRC law reshapes Scotland’s children’s hearings

From 1 April 2026, the rules for Scotland’s children’s hearings change to reflect the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child being written into Scots law. In plain terms, children and the adults who support them will have a clear way to ask whether a decision or process in a hearing respects children’s rights. The amendment rules (SSI 2026/30) were made on 23 January 2026 and laid before the Scottish Parliament on 27 January 2026, and they set out how a rights question should be raised and handled.

A quick refresher if you teach or study this topic. A children’s hearing is a lay tribunal that decides on compulsory measures to protect and support children. It sits under the Children’s Hearings (Scotland) Act 2011, with detailed procedures in the 2013 Rules. Together, they shape who attends, how decisions are recorded and how the child’s views are heard. (legislation.gov.uk)

The 2024 Act introduces the term “compatibility question”. This covers two situations in civil proceedings: where words in legislation may conflict with UNCRC requirements, or where a public authority has acted (or plans to act) in a way the Act makes unlawful. That definition matters because it triggers who must be told and who can step into the case. (legislation.gov.uk)

Under the new rules, a compatibility question can be raised at any stage of a hearing, orally or in writing. Who can raise it? The child, any ‘relevant person’ such as a parent or carer, a safeguarder, or someone the panel has allowed to participate. This is designed to be simple to use so that a rights concern can be voiced in the room without delay.

When a question is raised, the panel first checks whether there is enough detail. If not, it can direct the person to set out the facts and the legal basis more clearly. The panel must also decide if the point looks obviously without merit. The 2024 Act is explicit that something which appears frivolous or vexatious does not count as a real compatibility question, which helps focus time on genuine rights issues. (legislation.gov.uk)

If the panel is satisfied there is a real issue, it instructs the Reporter to send formal notice - ‘intimation’ - to three independent rights bodies: the Lord Advocate, the Children and Young People’s Commissioner Scotland, and the Scottish Human Rights Commission. This requirement flows from section 34 of the 2024 Act, and the new rules explain exactly what information must be shared with them. (legislation.gov.uk)

Those bodies can choose to take part in the case, but only for the rights question. The timetable is tight and important for lesson planning and practice simulations: they have 14 days from getting the intimation to say they will participate (the hearing can set a different period if appropriate), and then 7 days to provide written submissions. If they do, the hearing should take practical steps to make that participation work for everyone, such as ensuring papers are shared and time is set aside to hear their views.

Sometimes a rights point is big enough to be decided by a senior court. The 2024 Act allows tribunals with no appeal route to refer a compatibility question to the Inner House of the Court of Session, and others may refer too. The new rules add a clear duty: if a children’s hearing makes that referral, it must write to all parties and to the three rights bodies with the details and documents they need. (legislation.gov.uk)

What this means in practice is that children’s rights are not just background values; they are operational rules. Public authorities must act compatibly with UNCRC requirements in devolved areas, and hearings now have a built‑in route to test that when needed. For teaching, this is a concrete example of rights moving from posters on the wall to procedures that change outcomes. (legislation.gov.uk)

Here’s a classroom scenario you can use. A teenager argues a contact restriction in their order is too broad and may interfere with family life without good reason. Their safeguarder raises a compatibility question. The panel asks for the facts and legal basis, decides it is not frivolous, and directs the Reporter to intimate the issue to the three bodies. One opts in within the 14‑day window and files submissions the following week. The panel then considers those submissions before deciding what to do next.

If you’re preparing students or colleagues, keep the vocabulary clear. ‘Intimation’ means formal written notice. A ‘relevant person’ is someone with legal standing in the case, such as a parent or carer. The ‘Reporter’ is the Scottish Children’s Reporter Administration official who manages the case papers and arranges hearings. The ‘Inner House’ is Scotland’s top civil appeal court, which can decide complex rights questions sent up by tribunals.

A final note on context. Scotland is also changing youth justice and care law through the Children (Care and Justice) (Scotland) Act 2024, which, once fully in force, broadens who can be referred to the hearings system up to age 18 and changes how criminal courts and hearings interact. That sits alongside these UNCRC‑driven procedures from 1 April 2026. This explainer is for education and general understanding; it is not legal advice. (parliament.scot)