“I sound better on paper!” I announced nervously at my first official staff meeting at the Children’s Institute. What was jokingly intended to be an excuse not to speak at the meeting became an ongoing challenge to myself to contribute to legal research and writing at the Institute. The first opportunity to do so came when my manager, Paula Proudlock, requested me to produce a fact sheet on the laws that affect children’s decision-making power, with or without the assistance of their parents or guardians. This document became known as the “Ages Fact Sheet”. 

The purpose of the Ages Fact Sheet was, amongst others, to review current laws related to children’s ability or inability to give consent to access services with or without adult consent or assistance. The need for such a fact sheet emerged during parliamentary debates about lowering the age of consent in certain circumstances, and lowering the age of majority in the Children’s Bill (now called the Children’s Act 38 of 2005).  

Compiling the fact sheet felt like an amazing treasure hunt that at times turned out to be an investigative nightmare. In the end it felt wonderful to have produced a document that’s more than a reference tool. It is something that promotes knowledge and consideration of the links between different laws that regard children as able to act independently from their parents or guardians at different ages.

My experiences in compiling the Ages Fact Sheet prompted me to become particularly interested in the issue of consent laws that influence children’s ability to access health care services. I explored this topic further in an article entitled “Factors influencing children’s access to health care services”, which was published in the South African Health Review 2006. In the article I considered the positive and negative effects that consent laws have on children’s right to health care services. The article compares current laws on consent to the Children’s Act (which is not yet operational) and sets out case studies informing health care workers of their legal obligations in situations where child patients require access to health care.

My wonderful and insightful experiences as a researcher at the Children’s Institute have given me a sound foundation to build my career on as I return to my family in Gauteng. I will remember and draw on my former colleagues’ contagious passion for child rights as I take up my new position at the Centre for Child Law at the University of Pretoria.

© 2007 Children’s Institute, University of Cape Town