| (1) | A police official, in determining a date on which a child must appear at a preliminary inquiry, must allow a reasonable period for the probation officer to assess the child before the child appears at the inquiry. |
(2)
| (a) | A police official must in terms of section 18(4)(a)(i) and (ii) of the Act inform the child and the parent, appropriate person or guardian of the nature of the allegations against the child and of the rights of the child— |
| (i) | in a language that they understand and preferably in a language of their choice; |
| (ii) | in plain language by using simple vocabulary; and |
| (iii) | in a manner appropriate to the age, maturity and stage of development of the child and the intellectual capacity of the parent, appropriate person or guardian. |
| (b) | A police official must, when informing the child and the parent, appropriate person or guardian of the nature of the allegations against the child and of the rights of the child— |
| (i) | treat the child with care and understanding; |
| (ii) | ensure that other persons, whose presence is not required, are not in close proximity; |
| (iii) | give enough detail about the matters; |
| (iv) | allow sufficient time so that the child and the other persons can absorb the information; |
| (v) | encourage and allow the child and the other persons to ask questions; and |
| (vi) | elicit responses from the child and the other persons by asking questions in order to ensure that they understand the information. |
| (3) | The police official must in terms of section 18(4)(a)(iii) of the Act explain to the child and the parent, appropriate person or guardian the immediate procedures to be followed— |
| (a) | in accordance with subregulations (2) and (3); |
| (b) | in a step-by-step manner; and |
| (c) | taking into account the level of knowledge of the persons in respect of the functioning of the courts and the court procedures. |
| (4) | The police official must in terms of section 18(4)(a)(iv) and (v) of the Act warn— |
| (a) | the child about the importance of his or her appearance at the preliminary inquiry; and |
| (b) | the parent, appropriate person or guardian to bring or cause the child to be brought to the preliminary inquiry, |
in accordance with subregulation (2) and by indicating the seriousness of the matter and the implications of failure to appear at or to bring the child to the preliminary inquiry.
| (5) | A police official must obtain the physical address and, if applicable, the work address and contact particulars of the parent, appropriate person or guardian. |
| (6) | A police official must hand to the parent of the child, appropriate person or guardian an information note containing— |
| (a) | the information, explanations and warnings referred to in section 18(4) of the Act; |
| (b) | the name and contact particulars of the police official who handed the written notice; |
| (c) | the name of the police station where the police official is stationed; |
| (d) | the name and contact particulars of the designated probation officer; |
| (e) | the name and age of the child; and |
| (f) | the name and contact particulars of the parent, appropriate person or guardian who was present when the written notice was handed to the child, or who was handed a copy of the written notice. |
(7)
| (a) | A police official must notify the designated probation officer in terms of section 18(4)(b) of the Act by handing or faxing a copy of the information note referred to in subregulation (6) to the designated probation officer. |
| (b) | A police official who notifies the designated probation officer by facsimile must ensure that the designated probation officer has received the notice. |
