Children, Schools and Families Bill

House of Commons

Session 2009 - 10
Internet Publications
Other Bills before Parliament

Children, Schools and Families Bill

Children, Schools and Families Bill
Part 2 — Family proceedings
32

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Prohibiting or restricting publication for purposes of section 34
(1)
The court may not prohibit or restrict the publication of information for the
purposes of Condition 5 in section 34 unless subsection (2) or (3) applies (or
both subsections apply).
(2)
This subsection applies if the court is satisfied that in the absence of the
5
prohibition or restriction there is a real risk that the publication would
prejudice—
(a)
the safety of any person,
(b)
the welfare of a child or vulnerable adult, or
(c)
the interests of justice in the proceedings in question.
10
(3)
This subsection applies if the information is identification information relating
to a professional witness in the proceedings and—
(a)
the information is also identification information relating to—
(i)
another individual involved in the proceedings (other than a
professional witness in the proceedings),
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(ii)
an individual referred to in the proceedings, or
(iii)
an individual otherwise connected with the proceedings,
(b)
the information is also sensitive personal information relating to the
proceedings, or
(c)
the court is satisfied that the professional witness is, has been or will be
20
involved in the care or treatment of an individual involved in, referred
to in or otherwise connected with, the proceedings, otherwise than for
the purpose of being a professional witness in the proceedings.
38
Defences to contempt of court
(1)
A person is not guilty of a contempt of court under section 32 by reason of the
25
publication of information relating to relevant family proceedings if subsection
(2) or (3) applies.
(2)
This subsection applies if the person proves that at the time of the publication
the person did not know and had no reason to suspect that the information was
information relating to the proceedings.
30
(3)
This subsection applies if the person proves that—
(a)
the publication of the information would be an authorised news
publication but for the failure to meet Condition 3 in section 34, and
(b)
at the time of the publication the person did not know and had no
reason to suspect that the information was—
35
(i)
identification information relating to an individual involved in
or referred to in the proceedings,
(ii)
sensitive personal information relating to the proceedings, or
(iii)
restricted adoption information or restricted parental
information.
40
39
Appeals against decisions under section 33 or 34
(1)
Rules of court—
(a)
may make provision about appeals against decisions within subsection
(2) (including provision which modifies provision made by or under
any Act as it applies to such appeals), and
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Children, Schools and Families Bill
Part 2 — Family proceedings
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(b)
to the extent that provision is not made by or under any Act for appeals
against such decisions, must make such provision (including provision
about the route of such appeals).
(2)
Those decisions are—
(a)
decisions to permit, or refuse to permit, publication of information for
5
the purposes of section 33 or Condition 3 in section 34,
(b)
decisions to impose, or refuse to impose, conditions on permission
granted for those purposes, and
(c)
decisions to prohibit or restrict, or refuse to prohibit or restrict,
publication of information for the purposes of section 33 or Condition
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5 in section 34.
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Power to alter treatment of sensitive personal information
(1)
Schedule 2 (which contains amendments which alter the treatment under this
Part of sensitive personal information) has effect.
(2)
In this section “the Part 2 amending provisions” means the provisions of that
15
Schedule and any related repeal in Schedule 5.
(3)
The Lord Chancellor may not make an order under section 49(4) bringing into
force any of the Part 2 amending provisions unless—
(a)
the Lord Chancellor has carried out a review of the operation of this
Part, and
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(b)
the conclusions of the review have been set out in a report which has
been laid before Parliament.
(4)
No review for the purposes of subsection (3)(a) may be commenced before the
end of the period of 18 months beginning with the time section 32 comes into
force.
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(5)
Where section 32 is initially brought into force for one or more specified
purposes only, the reference in subsection (4) to the time that section comes
into force is to the earliest time it comes into force for any purpose.
(6)
A statutory instrument containing an order under section 49(4) bringing into
force any of the Part 2 amending provisions may not be made unless a draft of
30
the instrument containing the order has been laid before, and approved by a
resolution of, each House of Parliament.
41
Interpretation of Part 2, etc
(1)
In this Part—
“accredited news representative”, in relation to any proceedings, means a
35
representative of one or more news organisations who is a member of
a class of representatives of news organisations on which rules of court
confer a right to attend the proceedings;
“child” means a person under the age of 18;
“court” includes a judge and any person exercising the functions of a court
40
or a judge;
“identification information”, in relation to an individual involved in,
referred to in or otherwise connected with proceedings, means
information the publication of which is likely to lead one or more

Children, Schools and Families Bill
Part 2 — Family proceedings
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persons to identify the individual as someone who is or has been
involved in, referred to in or otherwise connected with the proceedings;
“information” includes opinion;
“information relating to the proceedings” includes—
(a)
any information contained in documents filed with the court in
5
relation to the proceedings,
(b)
any identification information which relates to an individual
involved in, referred to in or otherwise connected with the
proceedings, and
(c)
any information the publication of which is likely to lead one or
10
more persons to identify that a person who is involved in,
referred to in or otherwise connected with the proceedings is to
be found at a particular location;
“judgment” includes a record produced by the court of its reasons for a
decision;
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“news organisation” means a news gathering or reporting organisation;
“professional witness”, in any proceedings, means a person—
(a)
who has given, or whom it is proposed will give, written or oral
evidence in the proceedings in exchange for a fee, and
(b)
whose instruction by a party to the proceedings has been
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authorised by the court for the purposes of the proceedings;
“publication” includes disclosure or communication in any form to any
person or persons;
“publisher” means—
(a)
where the information is published in a newspaper or
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periodical, any proprietor, any editor and any publisher of the
newspaper or periodical;
(b)
where the information is published in a relevant programme—
(i)
any body corporate or Scottish partnership engaged in
providing the programme service in which the
30
programme is included, and
(ii)
any person having functions in relation to the
programme corresponding to those of an editor of a
newspaper;
(c)
in the case of any other publication of information, any person
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publishing it;
“relevant family proceedings” has the meaning given by section 32;
“relevant programme” means a programme included in a programme
service, within the meaning of the Broadcasting Act 1990;
“restricted adoption information” has the meaning given by section 36;
40
“restricted parental order information” has the meaning given by section
36;
“sensitive personal information”, in relation to any proceedings, means
information listed in Schedule 3.
(2)
For the purposes of this Part an individual is “involved” in proceedings if the
45
individual—
(a)
is or was a party to the proceedings or the subject of the proceedings, or
(b)
is a person called, or whom it is proposed to call, as a witness in the
proceedings.
(3)
The Lord Chancellor may, by order made by statutory instrument, amend—
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Part 3 — Miscellaneous and final provisions
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(a)
the definition of “professional witness” in subsection (1);
(b)
Schedule 3 (list of sensitive personal information).
(4)
An order under subsection (3) may make transitional provision or savings.
(5)
A statutory instrument containing an order under subsection (3) may not be
made unless a draft of the statutory instrument containing the order has been
5
laid before, and approved by a resolution of, each House of Parliament.
(6)
Nothing in this Part prejudices any other power a court may have to prevent
or restrict the publication of information relating to relevant family
proceedings.
(7)
No provision of this Part (or of Part 2 of Schedule 4 or Part 2 of Schedule 5)
10
applies in relation to relevant family proceedings concluded before the coming
into force of the provision in question.
Part 3
Miscellaneous and final provisions
Miscellaneous
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42
Charitable status of Academy proprietors etc
(1)
In section 482 of EA 1996 (Academies), after subsection (5) there is inserted—
“(5A)
A qualifying Academy proprietor is a charity (and in accordance with
Schedule 2 to the Charities Act 1993 is an exempt charity for the
purposes of that Act).
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(5B)
In subsection (5A) “qualifying Academy proprietor” means a
company—
(a)
which is limited by guarantee,
(b)
whose registered office is situated in England and Wales,
(c)
which in pursuance of an agreement under this section is the
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proprietor of an Academy, or of a city technology college or a
city college for the technology of the arts, and
(d)
whose object as expressed in its articles or memorandum of
association (or each of whose objects as so expressed) is a
charitable purpose.
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Expressions used in this subsection and in the Companies Act 2006
have the same meaning in this subsection as in that Act.”
(2)
In Schedule 2 to the Charities Act 1993 (exempt charities), after paragraph (c)
there is inserted—
“(ca)
a qualifying Academy proprietor (within the meaning given
35
by section 482(5B) of the Education Act 1996);”.
43
Fees for pre-registration inspections of independent educational institutions
In section 111 of ESA 2008 (fees for inspections of independent educational
institutions by Chief Inspector), in subsection (6) (institutions to which the section
applies), for “any registered independent educational institution that is not” there is
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Children, Schools and Families Bill
Part 3 — Miscellaneous and final provisions
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substituted “any independent educational institution that is registered, or is the
subject of an application to be registered, other than”.
Final provisions
44
Interpretation of Act
(1)
In this Act—
5
“EA 1996” means the Education Act 1996;
“SSFA 1998” means the School Standards and Framework Act 1998;
“THEA 1998” means the Teaching and Higher Education Act 1998;
“EA 2002” means the Education Act 2002;
“CA 2004” means the Children Act 2004;
10
“EA 2005” means the Education Act 2005;
“EIA 2006” means the Education and Inspections Act 2006;
“ESA 2008” means the Education and Skills Act 2008;
“ASCLA 2009” means the Apprenticeships, Skills, Children and Learning
Act 2009.
15
(2)
EA 1996 and sections 1 and 16 of this Act are to be read as if those sections were
contained in that Act.
45
Amendments and repeals
Schedules 4 (minor and consequential amendments) and 5 (repeals) have
effect.
20
46
Financial provisions
(1)
There is to be paid out of money provided by Parliament—
(a)
any expenditure under this Act of a Minister of the Crown;
(b)
any increase attributable to this Act in the sums payable out of money so
provided under any other enactment.
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(2)
There is to be paid into the Consolidated Fund any increase attributable to this Act in
the sums payable into that Fund under any other enactment.
47
Transitional provision
(1)
Until a section 162(1)(a) order comes into force, a reference to a local authority
in any provision of this Act (including any provision inserted by this Act in
30
another Act) is to be read as a reference to a local education authority.
(2)
In subsection (1) “section 162(1)(a) order” means an order under subsection (1)
of section 162 of EIA 2006 containing provision made by virtue of paragraph
(a) of that subsection (power to replace statutory references to local education
authorities with references to local authorities).
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48
Extent
(1)
This Act does not extend to Scotland or (subject to subsection (2)) to Northern
Ireland.

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Part 3 — Miscellaneous and final provisions
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(2)
An amendment or repeal by this Act of a provision that extends to Northern
Ireland has the same extent as the provision amended or repealed.
49
Commencement
(1)
Sections 44 and 46 to 50 come into force on the day on which this Act is passed.
(2)
Sections 27 and 43 come into force at the end of the period of 2 months
5
beginning with the day on which this Act is passed.
(3)
Section 29 comes into force on whatever day the Welsh Ministers appoint by
order made by statutory instrument.
(4)
The following provisions come into force on whatever day or days the Lord
Chancellor appoints by order made by statutory instrument—
10
(a)
Part 2;
(b)
Part 2 of Schedule 4 and Part 2 of Schedule 5 (and section 45 so far as
relating to those Parts).
(5)
The other provisions of this Act come into force on whatever day or days the
Secretary of State appoints by order made by statutory instrument.
15
(6)
An order under subsection (3), (4) or (5)—
(a)
may make different provision for different purposes or different areas;
(b)
may make incidental, consequential, supplemental, transitional or
transitory provision or savings.
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Short title etc
20
(1)
This Act may be cited as the Children, Schools and Families Act 2010.
(2)
This Act is to be included in the list of Education Acts set out in section 578 of
EA 1996.