The Education (School Inspection) (No. 2) Regulations 1993

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations replace the Education (School Inspection) Regulations 1993 (“the 1993 Regulations”) which are revoked. Parts I, II and IV come into force on, and replace Parts II and IV of the 1993 Regulations from, 1st September 1993. Part III comes into force on, and the remainder of the 1993 Regulations are revoked on, 1st October 1993. The Regulations apply in relation to schools in England only.

The Regulations reproduce the requirement in regulation 4 of the 1993 Regulations for the first inspection under section 9 of the Education (Schools) Act 1992 of a secondary school to take place on or after 1st September 1993 but before 1st August 1997 and for the first such inspection of a school of any other kind to take place on or after 1st September 1994 but before 1st August 1998. Subsequent inspections are to take place within four school years (defined by regulation 2 as years commencing on 1st August) from the end of the school year when the last inspection took place (regulation 4).

The Regulations extend the categories of persons specified in regulation 5 of the 1993 Regulations as those to whom the appropriate authority must notify the time when the inspection is to take place by including the funding authority, in the case of a grant-maintained or grant-maintained special school, the appropriate diocesan authority (defined in regulation 5(2)), in the case of a voluntary school or former voluntary grant-maintained school where that authority does not appoint the school’s foundation governors, any person entitled to appoint an externally appointed core governor, in the case of a school in a group of grant-maintained schools, any person named as a sponsor of an aided or grant-maintained secondary school in the school’s instrument of government, the funding authority and a further education funding council, if they are paying fees in respect of the education of a person at a non-maintained special or approved independent school, and a local authority who are looking after a child (regulation 5); and they extend the requirements in regulation 6 of the 1993 Regulations regarding the meeting with parents required to be arranged under paragraph 6 of Schedule 2 to the 1992 Act by including a further education funding council paying fees in respect of the education of a person at a non-maintained special or approved independent school (regulation 6).

Regulation 7 prescribes for the purposes of the Education Act 1993 and the Education (Schools) Act 1992–

(a) the time by which inspections are to be completed;

(b) the period within which the report of the inspection is to be made;

(c) the period within which the appropriate authority is to prepare an action plan following an inspection; and

(d) the period within which, and the persons to whom, the appropriate authority are to distribute copies of the action plan.

Shorter periods for the preparation and distribution of action plans are prescribed for cases in which the report concludes that special measures are needed in relation to the school than for other cases.

Regulation 7 also prescribes the period within which, in the case of a report which concludes that special measures are needed in relation to a school, the local education authority is to prepare a statement of their proposed actions and their comments on the action plan under section 211 of the 1993 Act.

Regulation 8 prescribes the cases in which a fee may be charged by an appropriate authority for the provision of copies of a report, summary or action plan.

The Regulations prescribe substantially the same intervals as those prescribed by regulation 10 of the 1993 Regulations for the inspection of denominational education and collective worship (regulation 10), and reproduce the requirements in regulation 11 of those Regulations regarding the periods for carrying out an inspection, the preparation of the report and summary and the preparation of an additional action plan by the appropriate authority. They extend the categories of persons entitled to receive copies of additional action plans by including the funding authority, in the case of grant-maintained schools, any person entitled to appoint an externally appointed core governor, in the case of a school in a group of grant-maintained schools and any person named as a sponsor of an aided or grant-maintained secondary school in the school’s instrument of government (regulation 11).

Regulation 12 prescribes the cases in which a fee may be charged for the provision of copies of the report, summary and additional action plan.

Regulation 13 reproduces the requirement in regulation 13 of the 1993 Regulations for local education authorities to keep accounts for each financial year in which they provide a school inspection service.