Education (Scotland) Act 2025

The Accreditation Committee

13 (1) Qualifications Scotland must establish and maintain a committee to be known as the Accreditation Committee.

(2) The functions of the committee are to—

(a) carry out the function conferred by section 4(1),

(b) advise the Scottish Ministers on any matters relating to that function.

(3) In carrying out its functions, the committee (and any sub-committee of it)—

(a) is not subject to the direction or control of Qualifications Scotland, and

(b) must act independently of Qualifications Scotland (but this does not prevent the committee or any sub-committee of it and Qualifications Scotland from sharing information with each other).

(4) The committee is to consist of—

(a) the convener appointed under paragraph 2(1)(b), and

(b) individuals appointed by the convener as committee members, a majority of whom must not be members of Qualifications Scotland.

(5) Members of staff of Qualifications Scotland may not be appointed as members of the committee but they must be allowed to observe or participate in meetings of the committee at the discretion of the convener.

(6) The Scottish Ministers may assign to a person appointed as a member of Qualifications Scotland—

(a) the function of deputising for the convener,

(b) the function of convening the committee during any period when there is no convener.

(7) A member to whom such a function is assigned—

(a) is assigned the function for such period as the Scottish Ministers specify in the assignment,

(b) may resign the assignment by informing the Scottish Ministers in writing to that effect,

(c) is assigned it, and ceases to be assigned it, in accordance with such terms and conditions as the Scottish Ministers determine,

(d) is, when exercising the function, to be treated as being a member of the committee (if not otherwise such a member).