Education (Prohibition from Teaching or Working with Children) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2007

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations, which revoke and replace the Education (Prohibition from Teaching or Working with Children) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2006, make provision for prohibiting the employment or further employment of teachers and non-teaching staff on the grounds that they are unsuitable to teach or work with children.

The Department must decide whether a person who has been dismissed from employment (or would have been dismissed but for his resignation, retirement or redundancy) on the grounds of misconduct rendering him unsuitable to work with children, should be prohibited from teaching or working with children. The Department shall afford a person under consideration the opportunity to make representations or submit evidence in support of his case and can invite observations from the person’s employer (regulations 4 and 5).

These Regulations extend the circumstances in which the Department must prohibit a person from teaching or working with children (regulation 6). The Schedule attached to these Regulations sets out the detailed conditions relating to regulation 6.

These Regulations extend the circumstances in which the Department must prohibit a person from teaching or working with children in the following ways:

(a) They add new offences – any offence in Parts 2 to 5 of the Schedule for which the relevant specified date is 15th June 2007.

(b) They extend the scope of existing offences to cover offences committed against or involving children aged 16 or 17 (instead of only children aged under 16); and, in relation to a limited number of offences, they extend the scope to victims of all ages (see sub-paragraph (ii) of paragraphs 4(b), 5(b) and 6(b) of Part 1 of the Schedule).

(c) In addition to convictions for an offence, they add cautions and other findings that a person has committed an offence (paragraph 12 of Part 1 of the Schedule provides the meaning of “found to have committed” an offence for the purpose of conditions C and D in paragraphs 3 to 7 of that Part).

(d) In addition to offences which are a completed offence or an attempt to commit an offence, they add offences of conspiracy or incitement to commit an offence and where a person is a secondary party to the offence (paragraph 13 of Part 1 of the Schedule provides the meaning of an offence that is “related to” an offence for the purpose of conditions D and E in paragraphs 4 to 8 of that Part.

(e) For convictions after 15th June 2007, they lift the requirement that a person must have been a teacher or a person to whom Article 88A of the 1986 Order applies before he was convicted of the offence (see paragraph 11 of Part 1 of the Schedule); and they lift the similar requirement in relation to persons who are prohibited because they are subject to a “disqualification order” (see paragraph 2(b) of Part 1 of the Schedule).

(f) They add comparable overseas offences (see condition E, paragraph 8 of Part 1 of the Schedule).

(g) They add “risk of sexual harm orders” (see condition F, paragraph 9 of Part 1 of the Schedule).

So far as these Regulations extend the circumstances in which the Department must prohibit a person from teaching or working with children, they do so only in relation to convictions etc. after the date on which these Regulations come into force.

These Regulations narrow the circumstances in which the Department must prohibit a person from teaching or working with children in one way, relating to offences where the court has decided not to give a disqualification order (regulation 6(3)).

In some circumstances where the Department is required to prohibit a person from teaching or working with children these Regulations create a new right for the individual to make representations to the Department (regulation 7). If, after consideration of the representations, it appears to the Department that the person is not unsuitable to work with children, it must revoke the prohibition and remove the person from the list (see regulation 9).

This right to make representations and the consequent function of the Department in relation to revoking the prohibition only apply where a person is prohibited by virtue of condition D, E or F – namely:

(a) Where the offence is a “Part 2 offence” that is:

(i) an offence that is “related to” an offence set out in Part 2 of the Schedule (see paragraph 13 of Part 1 of the Schedule for the meaning of “related to”);

(ii) committed against a child aged under 16 but more than 10 years before the decision; or

(iii) committed against a person aged 16 or over (condition D1).

(b) Where an offence is an offence in, or related to, Part 3, 4 or 5 (conditions D2, D3 and D4).

(c) Where the person has been found to have done an act which constituted a comparable overseas offence (condition E).

(d) Where the person is subject to a “risk of sexual harm order” (condition F).

The Department must keep a list of persons considered unsuitable to teach or work with children (regulation 8).

The Department may revoke a prohibition where new information comes to light or there has been a material change in the circumstances of the person who is prohibited. This does not apply: (a) if the person was prohibited on the ground he was included on the list kept under Article 3 of the Protection of Children and Vulnerable Adults (Northern Ireland) 2003 (“the DHSSPS list”) or because he is subject to a disqualification order; or (b) if the person was prohibited on the ground that he is unsuitable to work with children and that person claims he is no longer unsuitable. The prohibition may also be revoked where a disqualification order ceases to have effect, or where the person’s name has been removed from the DHSSPS List (regulation 9).

A person who has been prohibited may appeal to the Care Tribunal against a decision of the Department to prohibit him from teaching or working with children (although not where he has been automatically prohibited under regulation 6) or a decision not to revoke a prohibition following consideration of representations under regulation 7 or new evidence or information under regulation 9(2) (regulation 10).

A person cannot bring an appeal to the Care Tribunal on the ground of new information or evidence unless the Department has already considered that information or evidence.

A person who has been convicted of an offence of misconduct cannot challenge on appeal any finding of fact upon which his conviction is based. Where the Care Tribunal considers the prohibition is not appropriate it may order the Department to revoke it (regulation 11).