The decision by the Scottish Executive to end this restriction ties in with a recruitment campaign launched last month to attract 470 new members. Until now, those aged over 60 were prevented from applying and were forced to retire at 65.
Deputy young people minister Euan Robson has acknowledged that the exclusion of older people has deprived panels of valuable life experience, as well as disqualifying a group of people with more time on their hands to devote to the role.
Last year, 19 panel members of the Children's Hearings system had to retire because of their age. Scrapping the age limit will give 27 members the chance of staying on this year.
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