Employment of Young Persons

Local authorities were empowered to make byelaws to regulate the employment of children in the entertainment industry by the Prevention of Cruelty to and Protection of Children Act 1889.[1] This was later reinforced by the Employment of Children Act 1903 through which school boards were empowered to set the age and the number of hours that children could work in any type of employment, while town councils and county councils were empowered to regulate employment of under 16s as street traders.[2] The Children and Young Persons (Scotland) Act 1937 prescribed the ages and hours of working permitted but continued to enable education authorities to set byelaws within these general parameters.[3] The ages permitted in certain categories, such as entertainment and street trading were raised in 1963.[4] Education authorities were given more enforcement powers in 1973.[5] Although these additional powers were repealed in 2008, the essential provisions of the 1937 act remain in force.

Compiler: Elspeth Reid (2021)

Related Knowledge Base entries

Care of children, young people and families

Bibliography

Abrams, Lynn & Linda Fleming, Report into the Historic System to protect and prevent the abuse of children in care in Scotland, 1948-1995 (Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry, 2019) <https://childabuseinquiry.scot/research/research-reports/the-historic-system-to-protect-and-prevent-the-abuse-of-children-in-care-in-scotland-1948-1995/> [accessed 21 June 2021]

Haythornthwaite, J. A., N. C. Wilson and V. A. Batho, Scotland in the Nineteenth Century: an analytical bibliography of material relating to Scotland in Parliamentary Papers, 1800-1900 (Aldershot: Scolar Press, 1993)

[1] Prevention of Cruelty to and Protection of Children Act 1889 (53 & 53 Vict c.44).

[2] Employment of Children Act 1903 (3 Edw VII c.45).

[3] Children and Young Persons (Scotland) Act,1937 (1 Edw VIII & 1 Geo VI c.37) ss.28-29.

[4] Children and Young Persons Act 1963 (c.37).

[5] Employment of Children Act 1973 (c.24).