The Children Act 1908 (8 Edw. 7. c. 67), also known as the Children and Young Persons Act 1908, was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom passed by the Liberal government, as part of the British Liberal Party's liberal reforms package. The act was informally known as the Children's Charter and largely superseded the Industrial Schools Act 1868 (31 & 32 Vict. c. 25).

The act established juvenile courts and introduced the registration for foster care, thus regulating baby farming and wet nursing and trying to stamp out infanticide. Local authorities were also granted powers to keep poor children out of the poorhouse/workhouse and protect them from abuse. The act also prohibited children, under the age of 16, from working in dangerous trades, purchasing cigarettes, entering brothels, or the bars of trading pubs. It also established a minimum execution age of sixteen. That age was raised to 18 in 1933, albeit no juvenile offenders had been executed since 1889.

Additionally, it prohibited the consumption of alcohol for non-medicinal purposes, before the age of five. The act also prohibited children from learning criminal "tricks of the trade" in adult prisons, where children were often sent to serve time if a crime had been committed. Instead the Children's Charter had allocated Borstals. It eventually led to many councils setting up social services and orphanages.

Provisions

Repealed enactments

Section 134(3) of the act repealed 38 enactments, listed in the third schedule to the act.

Subsequent developments

Part I of the act was repealed for England and Wales by section 346(1)(b) of, and the fifth part of the third schedule to, the Public Health Act 1936 (26 Geo. 5 & 1 Edw. 8. c. 49).

The whole act was repealed by section 1(1) of, and the first schedule to, the Statute Law Revision Act 1950 (14 Geo. 6. c. 6), which came into force on 23 May 1950.

The whole act was repealed for England and Wales and Scotland by section 40(2) of, and the second schedule to, the Children Act 1958 (6 & 7 Eliz. 2. c. 65), which came into force on 1 April 1959.

The whole act was repealed for Northern Ireland by section 141(2) of, and the seventh schedule to, the Children and Young Persons Act (Northern Ireland) 1950.

The Methodist Insurance Company introduced an insurance policy covering liability for church youth activities in 1911 as a consequence of the passing of the 1908 legislation.

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