Education and Skills Bill

House of Commons

Session 2007 - 08
Internet Publications
Other Bills before Parliament

Education and Skills Bill

Education and Skills Bill
Part 1 — Duty to participate in education or training: England
Chapter 2 — Local education authorities and educational institutions etc
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Educational institutions: duty to provide information
(1)
Relevant information about a pupil or student—
(a)
who is attending an educational institution in England, and
(b)
to whom this Part applies,

must, on request by a local education authority in England, be provided by the
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responsible person to the authority.
(2)
A local education authority may request information under subsection (1) only
for the purpose of enabling or assisting it to exercise its functions under this
Part.
(3)
For the purpose of subsection (1), “relevant information” means—
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(a)
the name, address and date of birth of the pupil or student;
(b)
the name and address of a parent of the pupil or student;
(c)
information in the institution’s possession about the pupil or student.
(4)
Information within subsection (3)(c) must not be provided under subsection (1)
if—
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(a)
the pupil or student concerned, in the case of a pupil or student who
has attained the age of 16, or
(b)
a parent of the pupil or student concerned, in the case of a pupil or
student who has not attained the age of 16,

has instructed the responsible person not to provide information of that kind
20
under this section.
(5)
In this section, “educational institution” and “responsible person” have the
same meanings as in section 13.
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Information: supply by the Secretary of State
(1)
The Secretary of State may supply information, including social security
25
information, to a local education authority in England for the purpose of
enabling or assisting the authority to exercise its functions under this Part.
(2)
In this section “social security information” means personal information about
a person which is obtained by the Secretary of State in the course of the exercise
of a function under—
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(a)
the Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 1992 (c. 4), or
(b)
the Social Security Administration Act 1992 (c. 5).
(3)
For the purposes of subsection (2) “personal information”, in relation to a
person, means—
(a)
the person’s name, address and date of birth, and
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(b)
the name and address of a parent of the person.
(4)
A person to whom information is supplied under subsection (1) commits an
offence by disclosing the information unless the disclosure is made—
(a)
for the purpose of enabling or assisting the exercise of any function of
a local education authority under this Part,
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(b)
for the purpose of the provision of services in pursuance of section 54
or 56(1)(b),
(c)
in accordance with section 17 or any other enactment or an order of a
court or tribunal,

Education and Skills Bill
Part 1 — Duty to participate in education or training: England
Chapter 2 — Local education authorities and educational institutions etc
9

(d)
for the purpose of actual or contemplated proceedings before a court or
tribunal,
(e)
with consent given by or on behalf of the person to whom the
information relates, or
(f)
in such a way as to prevent the identification of the person to whom it
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relates.
(5)
It is a defence for a person charged with an offence under this section relating
to a disclosure to prove that the person reasonably believed that the disclosure
was lawful.
(6)
A person guilty of an offence under this section is liable—
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(a)
on conviction on indictment, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding
two years, to a fine or to both, or
(b)
on summary conviction, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 12
months, to a fine not exceeding the statutory maximum or to both.
(7)
In subsection (6)(b) the reference to 12 months is to be read in relation to an
15
offence committed before the commencement of section 282 of the Criminal
Justice Act 2003 (c. 44) (increase in maximum term that may be imposed on
summary conviction of offence triable either way) as a reference to 6 months.
16
Information: supply by public bodies
(1)
Any of the persons or bodies mentioned in subsection (2) may supply
20
information about a person to a local education authority in England for the
purpose of enabling or assisting the authority to exercise its functions under
this Part.
(2)
Those persons and bodies are—
(a)
a local authority,
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(b)
the Learning and Skills Council for England,
(c)
a Primary Care Trust,
(d)
a Strategic Health Authority,
(e)
a chief officer of police,
(f)
a local probation board, and
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(g)
a youth offending team.
(3)
In this section—
“local probation board” means a local probation board established under
section 4 of the Criminal Justice and Court Services Act 2000 (c. 43);
“youth offending team” means a team established under section 39 of the
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Crime and Disorder Act 1998 (c. 37).
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Sharing and use of information held for purposes of support services or
functions under this Part
(1)
Any persons within subsection (2) may provide relevant information to each
other.
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(2)
Those persons are—
(a)
a local education authority in England, and
(b)
a service provider of that authority.

Education and Skills Bill
Part 1 — Duty to participate in education or training: England
Chapter 2 — Local education authorities and educational institutions etc
10

(3)
Information provided under subsection (1) may only be used by the person to
whom it is provided for a purpose which is a relevant purpose in relation to
that person.
(4)
A local education authority in England may use relevant information held by
it for any relevant purpose.
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(5)
A local education authority in England may provide relevant information to
any other such authority for a purpose which is a relevant purpose in relation
to that other authority.
(6)
A service provider of a local education authority in England may provide
relevant information to any other service provider of that or any other such
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authority for a purpose which is a relevant purpose in relation to that other
service provider.
(7)
In this section—
“relevant information”, in relation to a person providing or holding
information, means information which—
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(a)
is held by the person for a relevant purpose, and
(b)
is about a young person or a relevant young adult in England;
“relevant purpose”—
(a)
in relation to a local education authority, means the purpose of,
or a purpose connected with, the exercise of any function of the
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authority—
(i)
under this Part, or
(ii)
under or by virtue of sections 54 to 63;
(b)
in relation to a service provider of a local education authority
(other than the authority in question), means the purpose of
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providing services of the kind mentioned in section 54(1);
“service provider”, in relation to a local education authority in England,
means—
(a)
where the authority provides services in exercise of its functions
under section 54, the authority;
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(b)
where, in exercise of those functions, the authority makes
arrangements for the provision of such services, the person
providing those services.
(8)
In subsection (7)—
(a)
“young person” means a person who has attained the age of 13 but not
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the age of 20, and
(b)
“relevant young adult” means a person who—
(i)
has attained the age of 20 but not the age of 25, and
(ii)
has a learning difficulty;

and subsections (5) and (6) of section 13 of the Learning and Skills Act
40
2000 (c. 21) (construction of references to learning difficulties) apply for
this purpose.

Education and Skills Bill
Part 1 — Duty to participate in education or training: England
Chapter 3 — Employers
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Guidance
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Guidance
In exercising its functions under this Part, a local education authority must
have regard to any guidance given by the Secretary of State.
Chapter 3
5
Employers
Interpretation
19
Contracts to which Chapter applies
(1)
In this Chapter, “relevant contract of employment” means a contract of
employment—
10
(a)
under which the employee is required to work for at least 20 hours per
week,
(b)
which—
(i)
has a fixed term of 8 weeks or longer, or
(ii)
does not have a fixed term but can reasonably be expected to be,
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or has been, in force for at least 8 weeks, and
(c)
under which the place of work, or one of the places where the employee
may be required to work, is in England.
(2)
But a contract is not a “relevant contract of employment” if—
(a)
the employer has undertaken to provide the employee with sufficient
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relevant training or education in each relevant period, and
(b)
by virtue of the contract, the employee is in full-time occupation for the
purposes of this Part.
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Appropriate arrangements
(1)
For the purposes of this Chapter, a person to whom this Part applies has made
25
appropriate arrangements for training or education if—
(a)
the person has enrolled on a course or courses constituting relevant
training or education (or arrangements have otherwise been made for
the person to receive relevant training or education), or
(b)
the person is participating in full-time education or training.
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(2)
References in this Chapter to appropriate arrangements made by the person
are to the arrangements (of whatever kind and whether or not made by the
person) for the person to receive the training or education in question.
Commencement of employment
21
Appropriate arrangements to be in place before employment begins
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(1)
A person must not, as employer, enter into a relevant contract of employment
with a person to whom this Part applies without being satisfied, having taken

Education and Skills Bill
Part 1 — Duty to participate in education or training: England
Chapter 3 — Employers
12

all such steps as are reasonable to ascertain, that the person has made
appropriate arrangements for training or education.
(2)
In the case of a relevant contract of employment which provides for
commencement of the employment to be conditional on the employee’s having
made such arrangements—
5
(a)
subsection (1) does not apply, but
(b)
the employer must not permit the employment to commence, at a time
when the employee is a person to whom this Part applies, without
being satisfied, having taken all such steps as are reasonable to
ascertain, that the employee has made appropriate arrangements for
10
training or education.
(3)
Failure to comply with this section in relation to a contract of employment is
not to be taken to affect the validity of the contract.
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Financial penalty for contravention of section 21
(1)
Where a relevant local education authority is satisfied that a person (“the
15
employer”) has contravened section 21, the authority may by notice (a “penalty
notice”) require the employer to pay a financial penalty.
(2)
The amount of the financial penalty is to be determined in accordance with
regulations.
(3)
A penalty notice must state—
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(a)
the ground for imposing the penalty,
(b)
the amount of the penalty,
(c)
how payment may be made,
(d)
the period within which the penalty must be paid (which must be not
less than 4 weeks beginning with the date on which the notice is given),
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and
(e)
the consequences of non-payment.
(4)
For the purposes of subsection (1), a local education authority is a relevant local
education authority in relation to a contract of employment under which a
person to whom this Part applies is employed if—
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(a)
the person belongs to the authority’s area, or
(b)
the person’s place of work, or one of the places at which the person
works, under the contract is in the authority’s area.
(5)
Without prejudice to section 146(4), regulations under subsection (2) may
make provision for penalties of different amounts to be payable in different
35
cases or circumstances (including provision for the penalty payable under a
penalty notice to differ according to the time by which it is paid).
23
Withdrawal of penalty notice given under section 22
(1)
This section applies where a penalty notice has been given to a person (“the
employer”) under section 22 by a local education authority (and has not
40
already been withdrawn).
(2)
The authority may withdraw the penalty notice by giving notice of the
withdrawal to the employer.

Education and Skills Bill
Part 1 — Duty to participate in education or training: England
Chapter 3 — Employers
13

(3)
If a penalty notice is withdrawn under subsection (2), any sum already paid or
recovered in respect of the penalty notice must be repaid to the employer with
interest at the appropriate rate running from the date when the sum was paid
or recovered.
(4)
For the purposes of subsection (3) “the appropriate rate” means the rate that,
5
on the date the sum was paid or recovered, was specified in section 17 of the
Judgments Act 1838 (c. 110).
Employer to enable participation in education or training
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Duty to enable participation: initial arrangements
(1)
This section applies where—
10
(a)
a person to whom this Part applies is employed under a relevant
contract of employment, and
(b)
before commencement of the employment the person notified the
employer in accordance with subsection (3) of appropriate
arrangements which the person had made.
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(2)
The employer must permit the employee to participate in training or education
in accordance with those appropriate arrangements.
(3)
A person notifies an employer (or a prospective employer) of appropriate
arrangements in accordance with this subsection by giving a notice which—
(a)
specifies the arrangements,
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(b)
states the times when the person would need to be not at work in order
to participate in training or education in accordance with those
arrangements, and
(c)
if so required under subsection (4), is given in writing.
(4)
Such a notice need not be given in writing, but, if it is not, the employer may,
25
on the occasion when the notice is given, require it to be given in writing; and,
if the employer does so, the notice is not to be treated as having been given
until given in writing.
(5)
The obligation in subsection (2) operates as a requirement, in relation to each
of the times specified in the notice under subsection (3)(b) which falls during
30
normal working time, for the employer—
(a)
if the contract was entered into before the notice was given, to offer to
vary the terms and conditions of the contract of employment so as to
secure that that time does not fall during normal working time, or
(b)
in any case, to permit the employee to take that time off.
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(6)
In this section, “normal working time”, in relation to a contract of employment,
means any time when, in accordance with the contract, the employee is
required to be at work.
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Duty to enable participation: arrangements subsequently notified
(1)
This section applies where—
40
(a)
a person to whom this Part applies is employed under a relevant
contract of employment, and

Education and Skills Bill
Part 1 — Duty to participate in education or training: England
Chapter 3 — Employers
14

(b)
after commencement of the employment the person notifies the
employer in accordance with subsection (4) of appropriate
arrangements which the person has made.
(2)
The employer must, so far as is reasonable having regard to the matters
mentioned in subsection (3), permit the person to participate in training or
5
education in accordance with those appropriate arrangements.
(3)
Those matters are—
(a)
the needs of the person in order to fulfil the duty imposed by section 2;
(b)
the circumstances of the employer’s business;
(c)
the effect of the person’s absence from work on the running of that
10
business.
(4)
A person notifies an employer of appropriate arrangements in accordance with
this subsection by giving a notice which—
(a)
specifies the arrangements,
(b)
states the times when the employee needs to be not at work in order to
15
participate in education or training in accordance with those
arrangements, and
(c)
if so required under subsection (5), is given in writing.
(5)
Such a notice need not be given in writing but, if it is not, the employer may,
on the occasion when the notice is given, require it to be given in writing; and,
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if the employer does so, the notice is not to be treated as having been given
until given in writing.
(6)
The obligation in subsection (2) operates as a requirement, in relation to each
of the times specified in the notice under subsection (4)(b) which falls during
normal working time, for the employer—
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(a)
to offer to vary the terms and conditions of the contract of employment
so as to secure that, so far as is reasonable having regard to the matters
mentioned in subsection (3), that time does not fall during normal
working time, or
(b)
so far as is reasonable having regard to those matters, to permit the
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employee to take that time off.
(7)
In this section, “normal working time”, in relation to a contract of employment,
means any time when, in accordance with the contract, the employee is
required to be at work.
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Sections 24 and 25: extension for person reaching 18
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(1)
This section applies where—
(a)
a person to whom this Part applies is employed under a relevant
contract of employment,
(b)
the person reaches the age of 18, and
(c)
at that time the person is participating in a course of education or
40
training for the purpose of fulfilling the duty imposed by section 2.
(2)
The person is to continue to be treated, for the purposes of sections 24, 25 and
27 to 30, as a person to whom this Part applies until one of the following
occurs—
(a)
the course of education or training concludes;
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(b)
the person reaches the age of 19;