(1) This section applies—
(a) if a person taken into custody under section 116 is a child; and
(b) despite any other provision of this Act.
(2) The child must be taken into custody only as a last resort and for the least time that is justified in the circumstances.
(3) The child must be held in custody only in a way that allows the child to be held separately from any adults being held in custody at the same place.
(4) A police officer must notify the following persons that the child has been taken into custody—
(a) a parent of the child, unless a parent can not be found after making all reasonable enquiries;
(b) if the chief executive (child safety) has custody or guardianship of the child under the Child Protection Act 1999, that chief executive or a person, nominated by that chief executive for the purpose, who holds an office in the department for which that chief executive has responsibility.
(5) This section does not apply in relation to a child if a police officer believes on reasonable grounds that the child is an adult.
(6) In deciding whether the police officer had the reasonable grounds mentioned in subsection (5), a court may have regard to the child's apparent age and the circumstances of the child's detention.
(7) In this section—
chief executive (child safety) means the chief executive of the department in which the Child Protection Act 1999 is administered.
parent, of a child, includes someone who is apparently a parent of the child.