Children, young people, and parental responsibility

Consent for children and young people requires careful judgement. Pharmacy teams should know the general rules and recognise when a case is complex enough to seek pharmacist, prescriber, safeguarding, or local policy advice.

Young people aged 16 and 17

At 16 or 17 years old, individuals are generally presumed able to consent to treatment unless there is clear evidence otherwise. In routine pharmacy practice, their informed decision will usually take precedence.

Children under 16

In England and Wales, a child under 16 may consent if they have sufficient maturity and understanding to appreciate what is involved (often called Gillick competence). In Scotland, section 2(4) of the Age of Legal Capacity (Scotland) Act 1991 creates a statutory route linked to the opinion of a qualified medical practitioner, so pharmacy teams should not assume the same test applies in every setting without local policy input.

If a child or young person can validly consent, treat their information with the same confidentiality as an adult unless there is a safeguarding concern or a serious risk that justifies sharing without consent.

Parental responsibility does not solve every problem

A person with parental responsibility may be able to consent for a child who cannot do so themselves. Parental agreement, however, does not automatically make it appropriate to proceed if the child's wishes, level of understanding, distress, or safeguarding needs raise concern.

National notes and when to escalate

Young people should be treated as individuals whose views matter. Consent, competence, confidentiality, and safeguarding may all need to be considered together.