Children Act 1989

Adoption Act 2002

There is no statutory definition of significant harm. "Harm" is defined as:

• Ill treatment.
• The impairment of physical or mental health (including that suffered from seeing or hearing another person suffer ill treatment).
• The impairment of physical intellectual, emotional, social or behavioural development (including that suffered from seeing or hearing another person suffer ill treatment).

"Ill treatment" includes sexual abuse, neglect, emotional abuse and psychological abuse.

In considering whether harm is significant to a child's health or development, the child's health and development must be compared with that which could reasonably be expected of a similar child. This includes impairment suffered from seeing or hearing the ill treatment of another person.

The meaning of "significant" in case law has developed to mean enough to justify state intervention.

There are no absolute criteria on which to rely when judging what constitutes Significant Harm. Consideration of the severity of ill-treatment may include:

• The degree and extent of physical harm;
• The duration and frequency of abuse or neglect;
• The extent of premeditation;
• The degree of threats and coercion;
• Evidence of sadism, and bizarre or unusual elements in child sexual abuse.

When judging what constitutes Significant Harm it is necessary to consider:

• The family context, including the family’s strengths and supports;
• The child’s development within the context of the family and within the context of the wider social and cultural environment;
• Any special needs, such as a medical condition, communication difficulty or disability that may affect the child’s development and care within the family;
• The nature of harm in terms of the ill-treatment or failure to provide adequate care;
• The impact on the child’s health and development;
• The adequacy of parental care.