Keyword

Gillick Competent

A Gillick competent child is a child under 16 who has the legal capacity to consent to medical examination and treatment, i.e. s/he is able to demonstrate that s/he has sufficient maturity and intelligence to understand and appraise the nature and implications of the proposed treatment, including the risks and alternative courses of action. The term 'Gillick competent' is also often used to describe children who are capable of giving consent to other matters requiring their decision without parental consent, i.e. where they are capable of understanding what is proposed and can express his/her own wishes. It has a wider meaning than the term Fraser Competent which specifically refers to contraceptive advice.