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Report Stage Proceedings: 24th May 2006                  

661

 

Education and Inspections Bill, continued

 
 

(6)    

The person responsible for admissions administration within a local

 

education authority must be employed or commissioned by the local

 

education authority.

 

(7)    

In this Chapter “admissions administration” means the person

 

responsible for the administration of arrangements for the admission of

 

pupils to any school within a local education authority’s area.”.’.

 


 

Retention of selection by ability or aptitude after parent ballot

 

Mr David Chaytor

 

Colin Challen

 

Roger Berry

 

Mr David Crausby

 

Dr Ian Gibson

 

Jon Trickett

 

Joan Walley

 

Negatived on division  NC39

 

To move the following Clause:—

 

‘(1)    

‘The Secretary of State shall by regulations make such provision as he considers

 

necessary or expedient which may include the repeal, amendment or revocation

 

of any legislation enacted prior to the coming into effect of this Act, for the

 

purposes of giving full effect to the principle set out in subsection (2).

 

(2)    

The principle referred to in subsection (1) is that no admission arrangements for

 

any school providing secondary education may, following the commencement of

 

a school year on or after 1st August 2010, continue to make provision for the

 

selection of pupils by ability or aptitude other than under section 101 of SSFA

 

1998 (permitted selection: pupil banding) unless the continuation of such

 

selection has been approved in a ballot of parents of pupils attending primary

 

schools from which such pupils may by choice of their parents transfer.’.

 


 

Independent body to review admission arrangements for secondary education

 

Mr David Chaytor

 

Colin Challen

 

Gwyn Prosser

 

Roger Berry

 

Mr David Crausby

 

Dr Ian Gibson

 

Joan Walley

 

Not called  NC40

 

To move the following Clause:—

 

‘(1)    

The Secretary of State shall, not later than six months after the passing of this Act,

 

appoint an independent body to review the arrangements in England relating to


 
 

Report Stage Proceedings: 24th May 2006                  

662

 

Education and Inspections Bill, continued

 
 

the admission of pupils for secondary education in Part 3, Chapter 2 of SSFA

 

1998 and section 36 of this Act.

 

(2)    

The Secretary of State shall invite representatives of—

 

(a)    

teacher associations,

 

(b)    

local authorities,

 

(c)    

parent groups,

 

(d)    

employer bodies, and

 

(e)    

such other persons as he considers appropriate,

 

    

to make submissions to the body established under subsection (1); and the report

 

of that body shall be laid before each House of Parliament not later than 1st April

 

2008.

 

(3)    

The Secretary of State, at the request of the independent body , may commision

 

research into the admission of pupils for secondary education and related

 

matters.’.

 


 

Secretary of State to implement independent review body report

 

Mr David Chaytor

 

Gwyn Prosser

 

Roger Berry

 

Mr David Crausby

 

Dr Ian Gibson

 

Jon Trickett

 

Joan Walley

 

Not called  Nc41

 

To move the following Clause:—

 

‘(1)    

Following the receipt by him of a report of the body established under section

 

[Independent body to review admission arrangements for secondary education],

 

the Secretary of State shall enter into consultations with such bodies as he

 

considers appropriate on proposals to give effect to the recommendations of that

 

body by a date no later than 1st September 2008.

 

(2)    

Following such consultations as are mentioned in subsection (1) the Secretary of

 

State may by regulations make such provision as he considers necessary or

 

expedient, which provision may include the repeal, amendment or revocation of

 

any legislation enacted prior to the coming into effect of this Act so as to give

 

effect to proposals whether or not recommended by the body established under

 

section [Independent body to review admission arrangements for secondary

 

education] for the reform of the arrangements for admission to secondary schools

 

in England.’.

 



 
 

Report Stage Proceedings: 24th May 2006                  

663

 

Education and Inspections Bill, continued

 
 

Definition and use of oversubscription criteria

 

Mr David Chaytor

 

Gwyn Prosser

 

Jeff Ennis

 

Not called  NC42

 

To move the following Clause:—

 

‘The requirements referred to in section 84(2) of SSFA 1998 shall include

 

references to the following categories of pupils and these categories shall be taken

 

as the criteria to be applied in the event of oversubscription in the order as set out

 

below—

 

(a)    

children with a statement of special educational needs;

 

(b)    

children in public care;

 

(c)    

children for whom the school is most appropiate on medical or social

 

grounds;

 

(d)    

children whose sibling or siblings will be enrolled at the school on the

 

first day of term and who permanently reside within the area from which

 

the school’s intake is normally drawn;

 

(e)    

children for whom the school is the nearest appropriate school to their

 

home;

 

(f)    

safe walking distance from the school;

 

(g)    

ease of access to the school by public transport;

 

(h)    

transfer from a named feeder primary school.’.

 


 

Restriction on oversubscription criteria in code for school admissions

 

Mr David Chaytor

 

Gwyn Prosser

 

Lynne Jones

 

Not called  NC43

 

To move the following Clause:—

 

‘The requirements referred to in section 84(2) of SSFA 1998 shall exclude the

 

following from the criteria to be applied in the event of oversubscription—

 

(a)    

giving higher priority to children whose parents are more able or willing

 

to support the ethos of the school or to support the school financially or

 

in some other way;

 

(b)    

giving higher priority to children according to the occupational or

 

financial status of their parents;

 

(c)    

giving higher priority to children according to the educational or social

 

group or background of their parents;

 

(d)    

seeking or take account of, in giving priority to a child or in deciding

 

whether or not to offer a place to a child, reports from his primary or

 

nursery school about past behaviour or attitude;

 

(e)    

allocating places at a school on the basis that a sibling or other relative is

 

a former pupil;

 

(f)    

the behaviour of other members of a child’s family, whether good or bad,

 

inluding a good or bad attendance record;


 
 

Report Stage Proceedings: 24th May 2006                  

664

 

Education and Inspections Bill, continued

 
 

(g)    

parent’s marital status;

 

(h)    

giving priority to children whose parents are staff or governors or who

 

have another connection to the school;

 

(i)    

giving priority to children who (or whose parents) have particular

 

interests, specialist knowledge or hobbies;

 

(j)    

giving priority to children based on the order in which applications were

 

received;

 

(k)    

in the case of grammar schools, giving priority to siblings of pupils.’.

 


 

Admissions report by local education authority

 

Mr David Chaytor

 

Gwyn Prosser

 

Paul Farrelly

 

Lynne Jones

 

Joan Walley

 

Not called  NC45

 

To move the following Clause:—

 

‘After section 85B of SSFA 1998 insert—

 

“85C  

Admissions report by local education authority

 

(1)    

A local education authority shall once in every school year make a report

 

to the admission forum containing the following information—

 

(a)    

the authority’s plans for acting in accordance with the code for

 

school admissions,

 

(b)    

the proposed admission arrangements for every school,

 

including academies and city colleges, in the local education

 

authority area,

 

(c)    

the number of applications for each year group admitting pupils

 

for each school,

 

(d)    

the number of pupils accepted for each year group and, if

 

oversubscription criteria are used, the number of pupils selected

 

using each oversubscription criterion, and

 

(e)    

the area which the school recruits pupils compared to the area in

 

which the school is situated.

 

(2)    

The opinion of the local education authority shall be included in the

 

report as to—

 

(a)    

whether the proposed admission arrangements for each school

 

complies with the code for school admissions,

 

(b)    

what changes, if any, each admission authority, or as the case

 

may be the governing body of each academy or city college,

 

should make to their admission arrangements to comply with the

 

code for school admissions,

 

(c)    

the accuracy and appropriateness of information given to parents

 

seeking admission to the school, and

 

(d)    

whether


 
 

Report Stage Proceedings: 24th May 2006                  

665

 

Education and Inspections Bill, continued

 
 

(i)    

the totality of the admission arrangements for the area

 

produces fair access to schools for all pupils, and

 

(ii)    

if not, what further action the authority intends to take to

 

ensure fair access to maintained schools and academies

 

and city colleges.”.’.

 


 

Administration of pupil admissions

 

Mr David Chaytor

 

Gwyn Prosser

 

Paul Farrelly

 

Not called  NC46

 

To move the following Clause:—

 

‘(1)    

Chapter 1 of Part 3 of SSFA (admission arrangements) is amended as follows.

 

(2)    

In section 88 (admission authorities and admission arrangements), in subsection

 

(2) after “means the” leave out “arrangements” and insert “criteria”.

 

(3)    

In section 89B (co-ordination of admissions arrangements)—

 

(a)    

in each of subsections (1) and (2) leave out “co-ordinating” and insert

 

“administering”,

 

(b)    

leave out subsection (5), and

 

(c)    

in subsection (6) at end insert “in particular that the local education

 

authority admits pupils to each school in accordance with the admission

 

criteria established by the admission authority for that school under

 

section 89 (procedure for determining admission arrangements)”.

 

(4)    

Leave out section 89C.’.

 


 

Academy admission arrangements

 

Mr David Chaytor

 

Gwyn Prosser

 

Paul Farrelly

 

Not called  NC47

 

To move the following Clause:—

 

‘In subsection (4) of section 482 (Academies) of the Education Act 1996, insert

 

after sub-paragraph (a)—

 

“(aa)    

conditions and requirements imposed for securing that—

 

(i)    

the proprietor of the school consults on the admission

 

arrangements as if the school were a maintained school

 

under section 89 of SSFA 1998 (procedure for

 

determining admission arrangements),

 

(ii)    

pupil admissions to the school are managed by the local

 

education authority under section 98B of SSFA 1998

 

(co-ordination of admission arrangements), and


 
 

Report Stage Proceedings: 24th May 2006                  

666

 

Education and Inspections Bill, continued

 
 

(iii)    

objections relating to the admission arrangements are

 

determined by the adjudicator under section 90 of SSFA

 

1998 (reference of objections to adjudicator or Secretary

 

of State).”.’.

 


 

Parliamentary control of code for schools admissions

 

Mr David Willetts

 

Mr Nick Gibb

 

Mr John Hayes

 

Mr David Evennett

 

Not called  NC51

 

To move the following Clause:—

 

‘(1)    

Section 85 of SSFA 1998 (making and approval of code of practice) is amended

 

as follows.

 

(2)    

For subsections (4) and (5) substitute—

 

“(4)    

If, within the 40-day period, each House resolves to approve the draft, the

 

Secretary of State shall issue the code (or revised code) in the form of the

 

draft, and it shall come into force on such date as the Secretary of State

 

may by order appoint.

 

(5)    

If no such resolution is made within the 40-day period, the Secretary of

 

State shall take no further steps in relation to the proposed code.”.’.

 


 

Prohibition on interviews: exceptions in the case of religious schools

 

Mr David Willetts

 

Mr Nick Gibb

 

Mr John Hayes

 

Mr David Evennett

 

Not selected  NC54

 

To move the following Clause:—

 

‘After section 88A of SSFA 1998 (inserted by this Act) insert—

 

“88B  

Prohibition on interviews: schools with religious character

 

(1)    

Section 88A does not apply in relation to any interview for the purpose

 

of assessing religious or denominational commitment where this is

 

provided for in the school’s admission arrangements and

 

oversubscription criteria and where the school is designated as having a

 

religious character under subsection 69(3).”.’.

 



 
 

Report Stage Proceedings: 24th May 2006                  

667

 

Education and Inspections Bill, continued

 
 

Admissions criteria

 

Mr Edward Leigh

 

Mr Brian Binley

 

Not selected  nc67

 

To move the following Clause:—

 

‘Schools shall publish their admissions criteria and may take all reasonable

 

measures, including interviews, to establish that applicants to the school meet

 

those admissions criteria.’.

 


 

Admission of children of staff

 

Mr Edward Leigh

 

Mr Brian Binley

 

Not called  nc70

 

To move the following Clause:—

 

‘Any child of staff currently serving at a maintained school shall be eligible for

 

preferential admission at the discretion of the school governors.’.

 


 

Admission of excluded pupils

 

Ms Sally Keeble

 

Mr David Chaytor

 

Dr Alan Whitehead

 

Not called  nc75

 

To move the following Clause:—

 

‘(1)    

A local education authority may direct any school in the authority’s area to admit

 

a pupil who has been excluded from any other such school.

 

(2)    

Before making a direction under subsection (1) the local education authority

 

must—

 

(a)    

consult the head teacher of the school to which the direction is to be

 

issued;

 

(b)    

have regard to local policies on exclusion; and

 

(c)    

have regard to the well-being of the pupils who are likely to be affected

 

by the direction, whether directly or indirectly.

 

(3)    

In this section “school” means—

 

(a)    

a community, foundation or voluntary school, or

 

(b)    

an Academy, city technology college or city college for the technology

 

of the arts.’.

 



 
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