A new Scottish Children's Hearings Tribunal has been proposed and will be laid before Parliament in the autumn. 

"Maintaining panels made up of local people, drawn from the community and best placed to make decisions and appreciate circumstances, is at the centre of these reforms but we are also reducing bureaucracy and improving delivery to help vulnerable young people," said communities minister Adam Ingram.

Under the plans, The Scottish Children's Reporter Administration will continue to provide the Children's Reporter Service for Scotland in order to make decisions on whether a child should be referred to a hearing, and on what grounds.