2. Each local education authority must, in accordance with these Regulations, establish a schools forum for their area by 15th December 2003.
3.—(1) A forum must have at least 15 members appointed by the relevant authority.
(2) The relevant authority may appoint not more than one quarter of the total membership of the forum as non-schools members to represent relevant bodies.
(3) Subject to paragraph (2), the forum must consist of schools members only.
(4) Schools members and non-schools members must be appointed by an instrument in writing to hold office for a term specified therein.
(5) The relevant authority may end the appointment of any schools member before the expiry of his or her term of membership if the member concerned ceases to hold the position of head teacher or governor of the school maintained by the relevant authority by virtue of which he or she became eligible for appointment to the forum.
(6) The relevant authority may end the appointment of any non-schools member who ceases to meet the eligibility criteria by virtue of which he or she became eligible to be nominated for appointment to the forum.
4.—(1) The relevant authority must appoint as schools members representatives of schools maintained by the relevant authority who have been elected in accordance with procedures determined by the relevant authority.
(2) In determining the procedures referred to in paragraph (1) —
(a)the relevant authority must make arrangements with a view to securing that schools members include a proportionate number both of representatives of primary schools and of representatives of secondary schools, having regard to the total number of pupils at primary schools, the total number of pupils at secondary schools and the total number of schools members to be elected under those procedures who are to be representatives of primary and secondary schools;
(b)where the relevant authority maintain one or more special schools, they must secure that at least one schools member is a representative of such a school; and
(c)where the relevant authority maintain schools of different school categories, the arrangements made by them by virtue of sub-paragraph (a) must secure that the representatives of primary and secondary schools appointed by them include at least one person who is a representative of a school in each such school category.
(3) For the purposes of paragraph (2)(c), the following are school categories —
(a)community schools;
(b)foundation schools; and
(c)voluntary schools.
(4) The relevant authority must secure that so far as practicable at least one schools member is a parent governor.
(5) In this regulation —
(a)“primary school” (“ysgol gynradd”) means a primary school maintained by the relevant authority but excludes a nursery school;
(b)“secondary school” (“ysgol uwchradd”) means a secondary school maintained by the relevant authority;
(c)“representative” (“cynrychiolwr”) means either a head teacher or a governor of a school maintained by the relevant authority;
(d)“special school” (“ysgol arbennig”) means a community special school or a foundation special school.
5.—(1) Where the relevant authority decide to appoint non-schools members to the forum, they must seek nominations for such members from relevant bodies.
(2) A relevant body may nominate a person only if he or she meets the eligibility criteria.
(3) Within one month following the appointment of any member nominated under paragraph (1), the relevant authority must inform the governing bodies of all the schools maintained by them of the name of the member and of the relevant body in respect of that appointment.
(4) In appointing non-schools members under paragraph (1), the relevant authority must, if it considers that it would be appropriate to do so, seek nominations from —
(a)the Diocesan Board of Education for any diocese of the Church in Wales any part of which is comprised in the relevant authority’s area;
(b)the bishop of any Roman Catholic Church diocese any part of which is comprised in the relevant authority’s area; and
(c)teaching and other trade unions with members working in Wales.
6.—(1) The forum is quorate if at least forty per cent of the total membership is present at a meeting.
(2) The first and subsequent chairs of the forum are to be elected by the forum.
(3) Chairs are to hold office for a period of one year (but may be reappointed).
(4) The National Council for Education and Training for Wales(1) may nominate an observer who is to be entitled to attend all meetings of the forum.
(5) The relevant authority may if it considers that it would be appropriate for a particular body to be entitled to attend the meetings of the forum as an observer, invite that body to nominate a person to attend meetings of the forum for that purpose.
The National Council for Education and Training for Wales was established under section 30 of the Learning and Skills Act 2000, c. 21.