The Education (School and Placing Information) (Scotland) Regulations 2012

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations consolidate, with amendments, the provisions of the Education (School and Placing Information) (Scotland) Regulations 1982 (S.I. 1982 No. 950) as relevantly amended by the Education (School and Placing Information) (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 1990 (S.I. 1990 No. 181), the Education (School and Placing Information (Scotland) Amendment Etc., Regulations 1993 (S.I. 1993 No. 1604), the Self-Governing Schools (Application and Amendment of Regulations) (Scotland) Regulations 1994 (S.I. 1994 No. 351), the Education (School and Placing Information) (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2000 (S.S.I. 2000 No. 407) and the Education (School and Placing Information) (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2007 (S.S.I. 2007 No. 487).

These Regulations relate to the supply by education authorities and their making available information concerning schools and the arrangements regarding placing requests for places in schools. The relevant schools are those under the management of an authority.

Regulations 2 and 3 make provision for interpretation and application.

Regulation 4 lists the kinds of information that are to be published, supplied or otherwise made available by an education authority to parents.

Regulations 5 and 6 provide respectively as to the supply and availability to parents of basic information (prescribed in Part I of Schedule I).

Regulation 7 provides for the form in which basic information is to be supplied and made available.

Regulation 8 provides for the supply of school information (prescribed in Part II of Schedule 1). Under this regulation parents and a pupil over school age, which is a pupil over 16 (subject to some exceptions set out in section 33(2) of the Education (Scotland) Act 1980 (c.44)) can access school information at a school.

Regulation 9(1) and (2) provide respectively that school information required to be supplied or made available under regulation 8 must be in the form of the School Handbook and must be published online. Regulation 9(3) imposes a duty on education authorities to make the School Handbook available to parents requesting it both in a particular form of writing or in an alternative format, provided it is reasonable to do so.

Regulation 10 provides for the availability of supplementary information (prescribed in Part III of Schedule I) to parents, relating to individual schools.

Regulation 11 provides for the form in which certain supplementary information is to be made available at certain places.

Regulation 12 provides for the annual review and revision of documents containing basic or school information which are to be provided under these Regulations. Regulation 12(3) and (4) provide that a document containing school information must be reviewed and revised by 8th December and an education authority must inform parents of pupils at a school that a revised School Handbook will be available from (and including) 15th December, both online and in hardcopy. Regulation 12(5) and (6) provide for basic and school information to be provided in other languages if the education authority considers it necessary.

Regulation 13 requires an education authority to take reasonable steps to keep supplementary information provided up to date and to make it available to a parent requesting it in another language if necessary.

Regulation 14 clarifies that basic information does not require to be supplied to the same person on more than one occasion in a school year.

Regulation 15 deals with advertisement by education authorities regarding placing requests and related information.

Regulation 16 provides for the content and timing of the notification by an education authority in pursuance of the authority’s duty to inform parents of the authority’s proposed placing of their child in a school and of a parent’s right to make a placing request.

Regulation 17 makes similar provision in relation to notification to parents of children with additional support needs.

Regulation 18 requires an education authority on receipt of a placing request to send out information specified in Schedule 2 to the Regulations.

Regulation 19 revokes the Education (School and Placing Information) (Scotland) Regulations 1982 and relevant amending instruments listed in Schedule 3 to these Regulations.