Office of Public Sector Information
(1) A local education authority shall make arrangements for ensuring that the functions conferred on them in their capacity as a local education authority are exercised with a view to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children.
(2) The governing body of a maintained school shall make arrangements for ensuring that their functions relating to the conduct of the school are exercised with a view to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children who are pupils at the school.
(3) The governing body of an institution within the further education sector shall make arrangements for ensuring that their functions relating to the conduct of the institution are exercised with a view to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children receiving education or training at the institution.
(4) An authority or body mentioned in any of subsections (1) to (3) shall, in considering what arrangements are required to be made by them under that subsection, have regard to any guidance given from time to time (in relation to England) by the Secretary of State or (in relation to Wales) by the National Assembly for Wales.
(5) In this section—
“child” means a person under the age of eighteen;
“governing body”, in relation to an institution within the further education sector, has the meaning given by section 90 of the Further and Higher Education Act 1992 (c. 13);
“maintained school” means a community, foundation or voluntary school, a community or foundation special school or a maintained nursery school.
(1) It shall be the duty—
(a) of a local education authority, in the exercise of any of their schools functions, and
(b) of the governing body of a maintained school, in the exercise of any function relating to the conduct of the school,
to have regard to any guidance given from time to time by the Secretary of State (in relation to England) or the National Assembly for Wales (in relation to Wales) about consultation with pupils in connection with the taking of decisions affecting them.
(2) Any guidance under this section must provide for a pupil’s views to be considered in the light of his age and understanding.
(3) In this section—
“maintained school” means a community, foundation or voluntary school or a community or foundation special school;
“pupil” does not include a child who is being provided with nursery education (whether at a school or elsewhere);
“schools functions”, in relation to a local education authority, means functions relating to—
maintained schools,
pupil referral units, or
the provision of education for children of compulsory school age otherwise than at school.
(1) Section 2 of the Education Act 1996 (c. 56) (definition of primary, secondary and further education) is amended as follows.
(2) In subsection (2B) (which extends “secondary education” to include education received partly at a school and partly at another institution)—
(a) in paragraph (b), after “another institution” there is inserted “or any other establishment”, and
(b) after “other institution” there is inserted “or establishment”.
(3) After subsection (6) there is inserted—
“(6A) In the context of the definitions of secondary education and further education, references in this section to education include vocational, social, physical and recreational training.”
(4) The Education Acts shall have effect in their application to persons receiving secondary education within section 2(2B) of the Education Act 1996 (c. 56) with such modifications as may be specified in an order under this subsection.
(5) The power to make an order under subsection (4) is exercisable—
(a) in relation to England, by the Secretary of State, and
(b) in relation to Wales, by the National Assembly for Wales.
(1) The Learning and Skills Act 2000 (c. 21) is amended as follows.
(2) In section 5 (provision of financial resources)—
(a) after subsection (1)(e) there is inserted—
“(ea) persons providing or proposing to provide, wholly or partly at the premises of an employer, education or training that is suitable to the requirements of pupils who—
(i) have attained the age of 15 or will attain that age in the current school year, but
(ii) have not ceased to be of compulsory school age;”, and
(b) after subsection (3) there is inserted—
“(4) For the purposes of subsection (1)(ea) “compulsory school age”, “pupil” and “school year” have the same meaning as in the Education Act 1996.”
(3) In section 65 (area inspections in England)—
(a) in subsection (1)(a) for “16” there is substituted “15”, and
(b) after subsection (9) there is inserted—
“(10) In subsection (1)(a) “persons who are aged 15” includes persons for whom education is being provided at a school who will attain that age in the current school year; and for this purpose “school” and “school year” have the same meaning as in the Education Act 1996.”
(4) In section 83 (area inspections in Wales)—
(a) in subsection (1)(a) for “16” there is substituted “15”, and
(b) after subsection (10) there is inserted—
“(11) In subsection (1)(a) “persons who are aged 15” includes persons for whom education is being provided at a school who will attain that age in the current school year; and for this purpose “school” and “school year” have the same meaning as in the Education Act 1996.”
(1) The School Inspections Act 1996 (c. 57) is amended as follows.
(2) In section 2 (functions of the Chief Inspector for England)—
(a) after subsection (8) (rights of entry etc.) there is inserted—
“(8A) For the purposes of the exercise of any function conferred by or under this section the Chief Inspector for England shall have at all reasonable times—
(a) a right of entry to any premises (other than school premises) on which, by virtue of arrangements made by a school in England, any pupils who—
(i) are registered at the school, and
(ii) have attained the age of 15, or will attain that age in the current school year, but have not ceased to be of compulsory school age,
are provided with part of their education by any person (“the provider”);
(b) a right of entry to any premises of the provider used in connection with the provision by him of that education; and
(c) a right to inspect and take copies of—
(i) any records kept by the provider relating to the provision of that education, and
(ii) any other documents containing information so relating,
which the Chief Inspector requires for those purposes.”, and
(b) in subsection (9)(b) (which makes it an offence to obstruct the exercise by the Chief Inspector of his rights of entry), after “subsection (8)” there is inserted “or (8A)”.
(3) In section 3 (power of Chief Inspector for England to arrange for inspections), in subsection (3) (rights of entry etc.)—
(a) after paragraph (a) there is inserted—
“(aa) a right of entry to any other premises on which, by virtue of arrangements made by the school, any pupils who—
(i) are registered at the school, and
(ii) have attained the age of 15, or will attain that age in the current school year, but have not ceased to be of compulsory school age,
are receiving part of their education from any person (“the provider”);
(ab) a right of entry to any premises of the provider used in connection with the provision by him of that education;”, and
(b) after paragraph (b) there is inserted “and
(c) a right to inspect and take copies of—
(i) any records kept by the provider relating to the provision of education for pupils registered at the school, and
(ii) any other documents containing information relating to the provision of such education by the provider,
which the Inspector considers relevant to the discharge of his functions.”
(4) In section 5 (functions of the Chief Inspector for Wales)—
(a) after subsection (8) (rights of entry etc.) there is inserted—
“(8A) For the purposes of the exercise of any function conferred by or under this section the Chief Inspector for Wales shall have at all reasonable times—
(a) a right of entry to any premises (other than school premises) on which, by virtue of arrangements made by a school in Wales, any pupils who—
(i) are registered at the school, and
(ii) have attained the age of 15, or will attain that age in the current school year, but have not ceased to be of compulsory school age,
are provided with part of their education by any person (“the provider”);
(b) a right of entry to any premises of the provider used in connection with the provision by him of that education; and
(c) a right to inspect and take copies of—
(i) any records kept by the provider relating to the provision of that education, and
(ii) any other documents containing information so relating,
which the Chief Inspector requires for those purposes.”, and
(b) in subsection (9)(b) (which makes it an offence to obstruct the exercise by the Chief Inspector of his rights of entry), after “subsection (8)” there is inserted “or (8A)”.
(5) In section 6 (power of Chief Inspector for Wales to arrange for inspections), in subsection (3) (rights of entry etc.)—
(a) after paragraph (a) there is inserted—
“(aa) a right of entry to any other premises on which, by virtue of arrangements made by the school, any pupils who—
(i) are registered at the school, and
(ii) have attained the age of 15, or will attain that age in the current school year, but have not ceased to be of compulsory school age,
are receiving part of their education from any person (“the provider”);
(ab) a right of entry to any premises of the provider used in connection with the provision by him of that education;”, and
(b) after paragraph (b) there is inserted “and
(c) a right to inspect and take copies of—
(i) any records kept by the provider relating to the provision of education for pupils registered at the school, and
(ii) any other documents containing information relating to the provision of such education by the provider,
which the Inspector considers relevant to the discharge of his functions.”
(6) In Schedule 3 (inspections by registered inspectors under section 10), in paragraph 7 (rights of entry etc.), after sub-paragraph (2) there is inserted—
“(3) A registered inspector conducting an inspection of a school, and the members of his inspection team, shall also have at all reasonable times—
(a) a right of entry to any premises (other than school premises) on which, by virtue of arrangements made by the school, any pupils who—
(i) are registered at the school, and
(ii) have attained the age of 15, or will attain that age in the current school year, but have not ceased to be of compulsory school age,
are receiving part of their education from any person (“the provider”);
(b) a right of entry to any premises of the provider used in connection with the provision by him of that education; and
(c) a right to inspect and take copies of—
(i) any records kept by the provider relating to the provision of that education, and
(ii) any other documents containing information so relating,
which the inspector or (as the case may be) member of the team requires for the purposes of the inspection.”
For section 40 of the Education Act 1997 (c. 44) (inspector’s rights of entry etc.) there is substituted—
(1) This section applies where a local education authority are inspected under section 38.
(2) The inspector, and any person assisting him, shall have at all reasonable times a right of entry to—
(a) the premises of the local education authority,
(b) the premises of any school maintained by the authority, and
(c) any other premises at which relevant section 19 education is provided, other than premises which are or form part of a private dwelling house but are not a school.
(3) The inspector, and any person assisting him, shall also have at all reasonable times a right to inspect and take copies of—
(a) any records kept by, and any other documents containing information relating to, the local education authority or any school maintained by the authority, and
(b) any records kept by a person who provides relevant section 19 education that relate to the provision of that education, and any other documents containing information that so relates;
which he considers relevant to the exercise of his functions.
(4) Section 42 of the School Inspections Act 1996 (inspection of computer records) shall apply for the purposes of subsection (3) as it applies for the purposes of Part 1 of that Act.
(5) Without prejudice to subsections (2) and (3), the local education authority and the governing body of any school maintained by the authority—
(a) shall give the inspector and any person assisting him, all assistance in connection with the exercise of his functions which they are reasonably able to give, and
(b) shall secure that all such assistance is also given by persons who work at the school.
(6) It shall be an offence wilfully to obstruct the inspector or any person assisting him in the exercise of his functions in relation to the inspection.
(7) A person guilty of an offence under subsection (6) shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 4 on the standard scale.
(8) In this section—
“document” and “records” each include information recorded in any form; and
“relevant section 19 education” means education provided to a child by virtue of arrangements made by the local education authority under section 19 of the Education Act 1996 (exceptional provision of education at schools or otherwise).”
(1) Regulations may make provision authorising or requiring the Secretary of State (in relation to England) or the National Assembly for Wales (in relation to Wales) to pay an allowance to or in respect of any eligible person who is over compulsory school age, in connection with his undertaking education or training of a prescribed description.
(2) The relevant education or training must not be higher education.
(3) Regulations may, in particular, make provision—
(a) for determining whether a person is an eligible person in relation to any allowance,
(b) prescribing information that must be supplied by or on behalf of any person before any allowance can be paid or continue to be paid to or in respect of him,
(c) prescribing the period by reference to which any allowance of a periodic nature is to be paid,
(d) prescribing the maximum allowance payable to or in respect of any person in respect of any period,
(e) prescribing the maximum period during which an allowance may be payable to or in respect of any person,
(f) where the amount of an allowance may vary to any extent according to a person’s circumstances, for determining, or providing for the determination by the Secretary of State or the National Assembly for Wales of, the amount required or authorised to be paid to or in respect of him,
(g) specifying whether any allowance in respect of any person is to be paid to him, to a parent of his or to any other person,
(h) for any allowance under this section to be made available on such terms and conditions as may be prescribed, or determined under the regulations by the Secretary of State or the National Assembly for Wales, including terms and conditions requiring repayments to be made in circumstances so prescribed or determined,
(i) requiring the payment of an allowance to be suspended or terminated in any such circumstances,
(j) for appeals with respect to matters arising under the regulations (including provision for determining, or enabling the determination of, the procedure to be followed in connection with appeals),
(k) imposing obligations on the governing body of any maintained school or institution within the further education sector in relation to cases where the school or institution is providing the education or training referred to in subsection (1).
(4) In this section and section 182—
“governing body”—
in relation to a pupil referral unit, means the local education authority who maintain the unit, and
in relation to an institution within the further education sector, has the meaning given by section 90 of the Further and Higher Education Act 1992 (c. 13);
“maintained school” means a community, foundation or voluntary school, a community or foundation special school or a pupil referral unit.
(1) For the purposes of this section, a “learning agreement” is a document which—
(a) specifies conditions which—
(i) relate to the attendance or conduct of, or completion of assigned tasks by, a person to whom an allowance is or may become payable (in this section referred to as “the student”), and
(ii) are either prescribed by regulations or, if regulations so provide, determined in accordance with any prescribed requirements by the person providing the relevant education or training,
(b) contains a declaration by the student relating to compliance with those conditions, and
(c) deals with such other matters as may be prescribed.
(2) Regulations may require a learning agreement—
(a) to be in the prescribed form, and
(b) to be signed by the student and by or on behalf of such other persons as may be prescribed.
(3) Without prejudice to the generality of section 181(3)(h), regulations may provide—
(a) that a person is not eligible to receive an allowance unless the person providing the relevant education or training holds a learning agreement signed by him, and
(b) that payment of an allowance is conditional on the person providing the relevant education or training from time to time determining that the student has complied with the learning agreement or has done so to a prescribed extent or in prescribed respects.
(4) Regulations may—
(a) enable or require a learning agreement to specify targets relating to the attendance, conduct or attainments of the student, and
(b) enable or require the Secretary of State or the National Assembly for Wales, in any case where the person providing the relevant education or training determines that targets have been met, to make additional payments of allowance to or in respect of the student.
(5) Without prejudice to the generality of section 181(3)(k), regulations may impose obligations relating to learning agreements on—
(a) the governing body of a maintained school, or
(b) the governing body of an institution within the further education sector.
(6) Regulations may contain provision for determining the person by whom any relevant education or training is to be treated for the purposes of this section as being provided.
(7) A learning agreement shall not be capable of creating any obligation in respect of whose breach any liability arises in contract or in tort.
(8) In this section—
“allowance” means an allowance under section 181;
“relevant education or training” means the education or training referred to in that section.
(1) If the Secretary of State so determines, any function exercisable by him by virtue of regulations made by virtue of section 181 shall, to such extent as is specified in his determination, be exercisable instead by—
(a) the Learning and Skills Council for England, or
(b) local education authority.
(2) If the National Assembly for Wales so determines, any function exercisable by the Assembly by virtue of regulations made by virtue of section 181 shall, to such extent as is specified in the Assembly’s determination, be exercisable instead by—
(a) the National Council for Education and Training for Wales, or
(b) a local education authority.
(3) A body by whom any function is for the time being exercisable by virtue of subsection (1) or (2) shall comply with any directions given by the Secretary of State, or as the case may be the National Assembly for Wales, as to the exercise of that function.
(4) Where any function is so exercisable by a local education authority, the function shall be taken to be a function of that authority—
(a) for the purposes of section 70 of the Deregulation and Contracting Out Act 1994 (c. 40) (contracting out of functions of local authorities),
(b) for the purposes of Part 2 of the 2000 Act (arrangements with respect to executives etc.), and
(c) subject to the provisions of section 13 of the 2000 Act, for the purposes of section 101 of the Local Government Act 1972 (c. 70) (arrangements for discharge of functions by local authorities).
(5) In this section “the 2000 Act” means the Local Government Act 2000 (c. 22).
(1) The Secretary of State or the National Assembly for Wales may make arrangements for any person or body specified in the arrangements to exercise on his or its behalf, to such extent as is so specified, any function exercisable by him or the Assembly by virtue of regulations made by virtue of section 181 (including any such function in relation to appeals).
(2) Any arrangements made under subsection (1) shall not prevent the Secretary of State, or as the case may be the National Assembly for Wales, from exercising the function in question himself or itself.
(1) The Secretary of State or the National Assembly for Wales may make provision for enabling appeals—
(a) to be made with respect to such matters arising out of the exercise by virtue of section 183(1) or (2) or 184(1) by any person or body of any function of the Secretary of State or the Assembly as he or it may determine, and
(b) to be so made to a person or body appointed for the purpose by the Secretary of State or the Assembly.
(2) The Secretary of State or the National Assembly for Wales may pay to any body or person by whom any function of his, or as the case may be of the Assembly, is exercisable by virtue of section 183(1) or (2) or 184(1)—
(a) such amounts as the Secretary of State or the Assembly considers appropriate for the purpose of meeting expenditure incurred or to be incurred by that body or person—
(i) in paying allowances under section 181, or
(ii) by way of administrative expenses,
in, or in connection with, the exercise of that function;
(b) in a case where the function is exercisable by virtue of section 184(1), such remuneration as the Secretary of State or the Assembly may determine.
(3) Any payment under subsection (2)(a) may be made subject to such terms and conditions as the Secretary of State or the National Assembly for Wales may determine; and any such conditions may in particular—
(a) require the provision of returns or other information before any such payment is made;
(b) relate to the use of the amount paid or require the repayment in specified circumstances of all or part of the amount paid.
(4) The Secretary of State or the National Assembly for Wales may pay to any person or body appointed by him or it under subsection (1) such remuneration or administrative expenses (or both) as he or it may determine.
(5) In relation to any function which, by virtue of section 183(1) or (2) or 184(1) is exercisable to a specified extent, references in section 183(3) and (4) and this section to the exercise of that function are accordingly to its exercise to that extent.
(1) Regulations may make provision for—
(a) the repayment by the Secretary of State of amounts payable in respect of loans mentioned in paragraph (a), (b) or (c) of subsection (2);
(b) reducing or extinguishing the amounts payable in respect of loans mentioned in paragraph (a) or (b) of subsection (2).
(2) The loans are—
(a) loans received under arrangements made under section 1 of the Education (Student Loans) Act 1990 (c. 6) by eligible persons who fulfil prescribed conditions;
(b) loans received under arrangements made under section 22 of the Teaching and Higher Education Act 1998 (c. 30) by eligible persons who fulfil prescribed conditions;
(c) loans received for educational purposes under such other arrangements as may be prescribed by the regulations, including arrangements made outside England and Wales, by eligible persons who fulfil prescribed conditions.
(3) The regulations may, in particular, make provision—
(a) for determining whether a person is eligible for the purposes of the regulations;
(b) prescribing the circumstances and manner in which, and the times at which, payments are to be made, or amounts are to be reduced or extinguished;
(c) allowing retrospective adjustments for the purposes of the regulations, including provision allowing the Secretary of State to require reimbursement of repayments, or to alter the amounts reduced or extinguished;
(d) for imposing on employers, or such other persons or bodies as may be prescribed, requirements with respect to information to be given to the Secretary of State;
(e) for the reimbursement by the Secretary of State of costs incurred by persons or bodies in complying with any such requirements;
(f) for appeals with respect to matters arising under the regulations (including provision for determining, or enabling the determination of the procedure to be followed in connection with the appeals).
(4) The Secretary of State may make arrangements for any person or body specified in the arrangements to exercise on his behalf, to such extent as is so specified, any function exercisable by him by virtue of the regulations (including any such function in relation to appeals).
(5) Any arrangements made under subsection (4) shall not prevent the Secretary of State from exercising the function in question himself.
(6) The Secretary of State may pay to any person or body by whom any function is exercisable by virtue of subsection (4) such amounts as he considers appropriate for the purpose of meeting expenditure incurred or to be incurred by that person or body in, or in connection with, the exercise of that function.
(7) Any payment under subsection (6) may be made subject to such terms and conditions as the Secretary of State may determine.
(8) Such conditions may in particular—
(a) require the provision of returns or other information before any such payment is made;
(b) relate to the use of the amount paid or require the repayment in specified circumstances of all or part of the amount paid.
(9) In this section—
“prescribed” means prescribed by regulations;
“regulations” means regulations made under this section by the Secretary of State.
Education Act 2002