School Admissions (Exceptional Circumstances) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2010

Regulation 4

SCHEDULE 1

1.  Each application shall be determined by a panel.

2.  A panel shall not issue a direction for a child to be admitted to a specified school unless that school has refused to grant a request for that child to be so admitted.

3.  An application shall be made by notice in writing to the body setting out the grounds in which it is made.

4.  On receipt of an application to the body, a panel may require a parent to provide relevant documents within a specified time.

5.  A panel shall give the parent an opportunity to make written representations or appear before it to make oral representations.

6.  A panel shall give the Board of Governors an opportunity to make written representations or appear before it to make oral representations.

7.  A panel may have regard to any views expressed by the child concerned.

8.  A panel may request the parent, the Board of Governors and any other person to supply further information which appears to it to be relevant to the determination of the application.

9.  The application for a direction shall be decided upon by simple majority of a panel.

10.  The hearing of the application shall take place within a period of four weeks beginning with the date on which the application is sent to the body, or as soon as possible thereafter.

11.  A panel shall issue its decision within a period of three weeks beginning with the final date of the hearing, or as soon as possible thereafter.

12.  A panel shall sit in private unless the parent requests otherwise in writing.

13.  Two or more panels may sit at the same time.

14.  In this schedule—

“Board of Governors” means the Board of Governors of the grant aided secondary school specified in the application;

“parent” means the parent applying for a direction under Article 16A of the Education (Northern Ireland) Order 1997.