The Education (School Development Plans) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2010

Statutory Rules of Northern Ireland

2010 No. 395

Education

The Education (School Development Plans) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2010

Made

29th November 2010

Coming into operation

24th January 2011

The Department of Education, in exercise of the powers conferred on it by Articles 13(3) and 90(3) of the Education (Northern Ireland) Order 1998(1), makes the following Regulations:

Citation and commencement

1.  These Regulations may be cited as the Education (School Development Plans) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2010 and shall come into operation on 24th January 2011.

Revocation

2.—(1) Subject to paragraph (2), the Education (School Development Plans) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2005(2) are revoked.

(2) The Education (School Development Plans) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2005 shall continue to apply to school development plans prepared or last revised before 24th January 2011.

Application

3.  These Regulations apply to school development plans prepared or revised by the Board of Governors of a grant-aided school, in pursuance of the requirements of the scheme of management for the school under Article 13(1) of the Education (Northern Ireland) Order 1998, on or after 24th January 2011.

Matters to be addressed in school development plans

4.  The matters to be dealt with in a school development plan are set out in the Schedule.

The period for which a school development plan is to have effect

5.  Subject to regulation 7, a school development plan prepared or revised in accordance with these Regulations shall have effect for a period of 3 years beginning with the date on which the preparation or the last revision of the plan was completed by the Board of Governors.

Publication of a school development plan

6.  A school development plan shall be published by—

(a) a copy of the plan being provided to each member of the Board of Governors of the school, to the principal of the school and to each member of the teaching and non-teaching staff of the school;

(b) a copy of the plan being provided to the Board for the area in which the school is situated and, in the case of Catholic maintained schools, the Council for Catholic Maintained Schools; and

(c) a copy of the plan being made available on request at all reasonable times, free of charge, to any person.

Monitoring, review and revision of school development plan

7.—(1) The Board of Governors of a grant-aided school shall monitor and review the progress made during each school year against the school development plan and revise it as they consider necessary.

(2) Without prejudice to paragraph (1), the Board of Governors of a grant-aided school shall revise the school’s development plan—

(a) no later than 3 years beginning with the date on which the preparation or last revision of the plan was completed; and

(b) following an inspection of a school under Article 102 of the Education and Libraries (Northern Ireland) Order 1986(3), no later than 6 months from the date on which the report on such an inspection is published by the Department.

Sealed with the Official Seal of the Department of Education on 29th November 2010.

Katrina Godfrey

A senior officer of the

Department of Education

Regulation 4

SCHEDULE MATTERS TO BE ADDRESSED IN SCHOOL DEVELOPMENT PLANS

1.  A statement and evaluation of the ethos of the school.

2.  A summary and evaluation, including through the use of performance and other data, of the school’s strategies for—

(a) learning, teaching, assessment, and promoting the raising of standards of attainment among all pupils, in particular in communication, using mathematics and using Information and Communications Technologies (ICT);

(b) providing for the special, additional or other individual educational needs of pupils;

(c) promoting the health and well-being, child protection, attendance, good behaviour and discipline of pupils;

(d) providing for the professional development of staff;

(e) managing attendance and promoting the health and well-being of staff;

(f) promoting links with the parents of pupils at the school and with the local community, including other schools, the business community, and voluntary and statutory bodies; and

(g) promoting the effective use of ICT, including its use to support learning and teaching, continuing professional development and school leadership and management.

3.  An assessment of—

(a) the school’s current financial position and the use made of its financial and other resources; and

(b) the planned use of the school’s projected resources during the period covered by the plan in support of actions to bring about improvement in standards.

4.  An assessment of the extent to which the school has met its key targets, or the progress that has been made towards these key targets in any school development plan which a school development plan supersedes or revises.

5.  An assessment of the challenges and opportunities facing the school.

6.  The arrangements made by the Board of Governors to consult and take account of the views of pupils, parents, staff and other persons or bodies in the preparation of the plan.

7.  Identification of the areas for development, which shall be informed by the school’s self-evaluation and include—

(a) the school’s key priorities for the period of the plan, based on the Department’s priorities for education;

(b) planned outcomes, including planned outcomes in learning, teaching and raising standards of attainment, which, in the case of schools other than nursery and special schools, must include targets for raising standards of attainment in communication, using mathematics and using ICT;

(c) the actions to be taken to achieve the outcomes mentioned at sub-paragraph (b) and final dates for completion;

(d) the financial and other resources available to the school to be used in support of the actions identified at sub-paragraph (c) to achieve the outcomes identified at sub-paragraph (b); and

(e) the arrangements for the Board of Governors, in consultation with the principal, to monitor, review and evaluate progress made against the school development plan.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations, which are made under Article 13(3) of the Education (Northern Ireland) Order 1998, relate to school development plans in grant-aided schools.

Regulation 2 revokes the Education (School Development Plans) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2005, subject to savings in relation to development plans made or last revised before 1st December 2010.

Regulation 4 and the Schedule set out the matters to be dealt with in a school development plan.

Regulation 5 requires that, subject to regulation 7, a school development plan has effect for a period of three years.

Regulation 6 sets out the arrangements for the publication of a school development plan.

Regulation 7 requires Boards of Governors to annually monitor and review progress made against the school development plan. It also requires a school development plan to be revised after three years or no later than 6 months following the date of publication of a report of an inspection of a school carried out under Article 102 of the Education and Libraries (Northern Ireland) Order 1986.

(1)

S.I 1998/1759 (N.I. 13) to which there are amendments not relevant to these Regulations

(2)

S.R. 2005 No. 303

(3)

S.I. 1986/594 (N.I. 3); Article 102 was substituted by S.I. 1996/274 (N.I. 1), Article 33, and amended by S.I. 1997/1772 (N.I. 15), Article 25 and Schedule 4.