The Education (School Performance Information) (England) Regulations 2001

PART I General

Citation, commencement and application

1.—(1) These Regulations may be cited as the Education (School Performance Information) (England) Regulations 2001 and shall come into force on 12th November 2001.

(2) These Regulations shall apply only in relation to England.

Interpretation

2.—(1) In these Regulations, except where the context otherwise requires—

“the 1996 Act” means the Education Act 1996;

“assessment” in relation to a maintained school means assessment pursuant to orders made under section 356 of the 1996 Act(1) and “level” shall be construed in accordance with the provisions of such orders and in relation to a CTC means assessment pursuant to an agreement with the Secretary of State made under section 482 of the 1996 Act(2);

“assessment term” means the term in which assessment is completed;

“attainment targets” has the meaning given by section 353 of the 1996 Act;

“authority” means—

(i)

in relation to a school maintained by a local education authority that authority; and

(ii)

in relation to a non-maintained special school or an independent school, means the local education authority in whose area the school is situated;

“external marking agency” means a body nominated by the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority(3) and approved by the Secretary of State to mark NC tests;

“CTC” means city technology college, city college for the technology of the arts or a city academy;

“core subject” means English, mathematics or science;

“GCE ‘A’ level examinations” means General Certificate of Education advanced level examinations;

“GCE ‘AS’ examinations” means—

(i)

General Certificate of Education advanced supplementary examinations; or

(ii)

General Certificate of Education advanced subsidiary examinations;

“GCSE” means General Certificate of Secondary Education;

“GNVQ” means a General National Vocational Qualification;

“information technology key skill qualification” means a qualification awarded to a pupil who has completed an examination, course or unit in the key skill of information technology;

“maintained school” means—

(i)

any community, foundation or voluntary school, or

(ii)

any community or foundation special school which is not established in a hospital,

but excludes any nursery school;

“middle deemed secondary school” means a middle school deemed to be a secondary school by virtue of the Education (Middle Schools) Regulations 1980(4);

“NC tests” means National Curriculum tests administered to pupils for the purpose of assessing the level of attainment which they have achieved in any core subject being tests laid down in provisions made by the Secretary of State under the appropriate order made under section 356 of the 1996 Act in force when those tests were administered(5);

“non-maintained special school” means a special school which is not maintained by an authority;

“permanent exclusion” means the permanent exclusion of a pupil from a school on disciplinary grounds and “permanently excluded” shall be construed accordingly;

“public examination” means a public examination which is for the time being prescribed by regulations made under section 453 of the 1996 Act(6);

“register” means the register of pupils kept under section 434 of the 1996 Act(7) and in accordance with the Education (Pupil Registration) Regulations 1995(8);

“reporting school year” means the school year immediately preceding the school year in which information provided to the Secretary of State is to be published by him or, as the case may be, local education authorities;

“school day” has the meaning given by section 579(1) of the 1996 Act;

“school year” has the meaning given by section 579(1) of the 1996 Act(9);

“special educational needs” has the meaning given by section 312(1) of the 1996 Act;

“special school” has the meaning given by section 337 of the 1996 Act(10);

“unauthorised absence” means an occasion on which a pupil is recorded as absent without authority pursuant to the Education (Pupil Registration) Regulations 1995 and “authorised absence” shall be construed accordingly;

“unit”, in relation to a vocational qualification, means a module or part of a course leading to that qualification which, when successfully completed, can be counted together with other modules or parts towards obtaining that qualification; and

“Vocational “A’ level examinations” means vocational certificate of education advanced level examinations;

“Vocational ‘AS’ level examinations” means vocational certificate of education advanced subsidiary examinations.

(2) In these Regulations, except where the context otherwise requires—

(a) references to pupils of a particular age are to pupils who attained that age during the period of twelve months ending on the 31st August preceding the commencement of the reporting school year, where the reporting school year begins after that date, or the 31st August which falls within the reporting school year, where the reporting school year begins on or before that date, and who were registered pupils at the school on the third Thursday in January in the reporting school year;

(b) references to examinations for which pupils at the school were entered include examinations for which they were entered otherwise than in pursuance of section 402 of the 1996 Act(11); and

(c) references to key stages are references to the periods set out in section 355(1) of the 1996 Act.

(3) Particulars to which these Regulations apply may be made available in the form of data from which the particulars are capable of being extracted by computer.

(4) For the purposes of these Regulations any examination for the GCSE for which a pupil aged 15 was entered during a previous school year shall be treated as such an examination for which the pupil was entered during the reporting school year.

(5) Information relating to authorised or unauthorised absences shall not include any information relating to any period after the Friday before the last Monday in May in the reporting school year.

(6) In these Regulations, unless the context otherwise requires, any reference to a numbered regulation or Schedule is a reference to the regulation or Schedule bearing that number in these Regulations and any reference in a regulation or Schedule to a numbered paragraph is to the paragraph in that regulation or Schedule bearing that number.

Qualification of duties

3.  The duties of governing bodies, authorities and proprietors to make available, provide or publish information apply only to the extent that that information is available to them in time for it to be reasonably practicable for them to make available, provide or publish that information before the latest occasion on which that information is required to be made available, provided or published, as the case may be.

Revocations and savings

4.—(1) Subject to paragraph (2), the Regulations referred to in Schedule 11 are hereby revoked.

(2) The revocation of the Regulations referred to in Schedule 11 shall not relieve any person of any duty to make available, provide or publish information which has not been performed before the date that these Regulations come into force.

(1)

The orders currently in force are the Education (National Curriculum) (Key Stage 1 Assessment Arrangements) (England) Order 1999, (S.I. 1999/1236, amended by S.I. 1999/2187 and S.I. 2000/1242), the Education (National Curriculum) (Key Stage 2 Assessment Arrangements) (England) Order 1999, (S.I. 1999/2188), the Education (National Curriculum) (Key Stage 3 Assessment Arrangements) (England) Order 1999, (S.I. 1999/2189).

(2)

Section 482 was amended by section 130 of the Learning and Skills Act 2000.

(3)

The Qualifications and Curriculum Authority was established under section 21 of the Education Act 1997 (c. 44).

(4)

S.I. 1980/918, amended by S.I. 1994/581.

(5)

The orders currently in force are the Education (National Curriculum) (Key Stage 1 Assessment Arrangements) (England) Order 1999, (S.I. 1999/1236), amended by S.I. 1999/2187 and S.I. 2000/1242, the Education (National Curriculum) (Key Stage 2 Assessment Arrangements) (England) Order 1999, (S.I. 1999/2188) and the Education (National Curriculum) (Key Stage 3 Assessment Arrangements) (England) Order 1999, (S.I. 1999/2189).

(6)

The current Regulations are the Education (Prescribed Public Examination) Regulations 1989 (S.I. 1989/377) which continue in effect by virtue of paragraph 1 of Schedule 39 to the Education Act 1996.

(7)

Section 434 was amended by paragraphs 57 and 111 of Schedule 30 and Schedule 31 to the School Standards and Framework Act 1998.

(8)

S.I. 1995/2089, amended by S.I. 1997/2624 and S.I. 1999/2267.

(9)

Section 579(1) was amended by paragraph 43 of Schedule 7 to the Education Act 1997.

(10)

Section 337 was substituted by paragraphs 57 and 80 of Schedule 30 to the School Standards and Framework Act 1998.

(11)

Section 402 was amended by paragraphs 57 and 101 of Schedule 30 to the School Standards and Framework Act 1998.