Education (Scotland) Act 1980

Attendance at junior colleges

45 Attendance at junior colleges

(1) It shall be the duty of every education authority to serve on every young person ordinarily resident in their area who is not exempt from compulsory further education a notice (hereinafter referred to as an " attendance notice ") directing him to attend a junior college named in the notice, and it shall be the duty of every young person upon whom such a notice is served to attend at the junior college in accordance with the requirements specified in the notice. The authority shall serve a copy of the notice and of any amendment thereof upon the parent of the young person.

(2) Subject to subsection (3) below the requirements specified in an attendance notice shall be such as to secure the attendance at a junior college of the young person upon whom the notice is served—

(a) for one whole day, or two half-days, in each of forty-four weeks in every year while he remains a young person; or

(b) for one continuous period of eight weeks, or for two continuous periods of four weeks each in every such year, if the authority are satisfied that continuous attendance would be more suitable for the said young person;

and in this section the expression " year " means, in relation to any young person, in the case of the first year, the period of twelve months beginning with the first day on which he is required by an attendance notice served on him to attend a junior college, and in the case of every subsequent year the period of twelve months beginning immediately after the expiration of the last preceding year:

Provided that—

(i) in respect of the year in which the young person attains the age of eighteen the requirements specified in the notice shall be reduced to such extent as the education authority think expedient for securing that the attendances required of him until he attains that age shall be as nearly as may be proportionate to those which would have been required of him during a full period of twelve months ; and

(ii) the Secretary of State may from time to time require an education authority to fix for their area two or more dates for terminating attendance at junior colleges. The education authority shall intimate to the Secretary of State the dates which they propose to fix, and the Secretary of State may approve the said dates or may, after consultation with the authority and with such other persons as he thinks fit, require the authority to fix other dates. The authority shall fix dates in accordance with the approval or requirement of the Secretary of State, and thereupon a young person resident in the area shall for the purpose of attendance at a junior college be deemed to attain the age of eighteen on the fixed date next following the day when he actually attains that age.

(3) If by reason of the nature of the employment of any young person or of other circumstances affecting him the education authority are satisfied that attendance in accordance with subsection (2) above would not be suitable in his case, an attendance notice may, with the consent of the young person, require his attendance in accordance with such other arrangements as may be specified in the notice, so, however, that the requirements specified in the notice in accordance with such arrangements as aforesaid shall be such as to secure the attendance of the young person for periods amounting in the aggregate to three hundred and thirty hours in each year, or, in the case of the year in which he attains the age of eighteen, to the proportionately reduced number of hours.

(4) Except where continuous attendance at a junior college involves residence at the college or at a hostel, no attendance notice shall require a young person to attend a junior college on a Sunday or during any holiday or half-holiday to which by any enactment regulating his employment or by agreement he is entitled, or, so far as practicable, during any holiday or half-holiday which is allowed in accordance with any custom of his employment, or between the hours of six in the evening and half past eight in the morning:

Provided that the Secretary of State may, on the application of an education authority, direct that in relation to young persons in their area or in any part thereof employed at night or otherwise employed at abnormal times this subsection shall have effect as if for the reference to the hours of six in the evening and half past eight in the morning there were substituted a reference to such other times as may be specified in the direction.

(5) The place, days, times and periods of attendance required of a young person and the period for which the notice is to be in force shall be specified in any attendance notice served on him; and the requirements of any such notice may be amended as occasion may require either by the authority by whom it was served or by any other education authority in whose area he may for the time being reside, so, however, that the provisions of every such notice shall be such as to secure that the requirements imposed on the young person during each year while he remains a young person shall comply with subsections (2), (3) and (4) above.

(6) In determining what requirements shall be imposed upon a young person by an attendance notice or by any amendments to such a notice, the education authority shall have regard, so far as practicable, to any preference which he and, in the case of a young person under the age of sixteen years, his parent may express, to the circumstances of his employment or prospective employment, and to any representations that may be made to the authority by his employer or any person proposing to employ him.

(7) If a pupil satisfies the education authority that any religious observance or any part of the instruction at a junior college which the pupil is required to attend is contrary to his religious belief or likely to give offence to his religious feelings, the education authority shall permit the pupil to withdraw from such observance or instruction and shall, so far as practicable, arrange for him to be suitably occupied while such observance or instruction is in progress.

(8) The following persons shall be exempt from compulsory attendance at a junior college, that is to say:—

(a) any person who is in full-time attendance at any school or other educational establishment (not being a junior college) approved by the Secretary of State for the purpose;

(b) any person who is shown to the satisfaction of the education authority to be receiving suitable and efficient instruction in some other manner either full-time or for such times as in the opinion of the authority are equivalent to not less than three hundred and thirty hours instruction in a period of twelve months;

(c) any person who having been exempt under either paragraph (a) or (b) above did not cease to be so exempt until after he had attained the age of seventeen years and eight months;

(d) any person who is undergoing a course of training approved by the Secretary of State for the mercantile marine or the sea fishing industry or who, having satisfactorily completed such a course, is engaged in the mercantile marine or in the sea fishing industry;

(e) any person to whom, by reason of section 130 or 131 of this Act, the duties of education authorities do not relate;

(f) any person who attained the age of sixteen years before the date when the scheme for the provision of junior colleges came into force.

(9) If any person is aggrieved by a decision of an education authority given under subsection (8)(b) above, he may refer the question to the Secretary of State, who shall give such direction thereon as he thinks fit.

(10) If any young person upon whom an attendance notice has been served fails to comply with any requirement of the notice, he shall be guilty of an offence against this section unless he proves either—

(a) that he was exempt from compulsory attendance for further education, or

(b) that he was prevented from complying with the requirement by reason of sickness or any other unavoidable cause,

or unless the court is satisfied that there was some other reasonable cause for such failure.

46 Provisions for securing attendance at junior colleges

(1) For the purpose of facilitating the execution by education authorities of their functions under section 45 of this Act, the following provisions shall have effect, that is to say—

(a) every young person who is not exempt from compulsory attendance at a junior college shall at all times keep the education authority concerned informed of his proper address;

(b) every person whose employment such a young person as aforesaid enters shall, not later than four days thereafter, if the young person has not then left his employment, notify the education authority concerned that the young person has entered his employment;

(c) where a young person whose entry into employment has been notified in pursuance of paragraph (b) above leaves that employment, the employer shall within four days thereafter notify the education authority concerned that the young person has ceased to be employed by him;

(d) where such a young person as aforesaid enters the employment of an employer by whom he had previously been employed, the employer shall immediately notify such entry to the education authority concerned unless the previous entry was so notified in pursuance of paragraph (b) above ;

(e) every person by whom such a young person as aforesaid is employed shall notify the education authority concerned of any change of his address, and, if known to him, of any change of the young person's address.

In this subsection the expression " the education authority concerned" means the education authority in whose area the young person is ordinarily resident.

(2) Any person who fails to comply with any requirement imposed on him by subsection (1) above shall be guilty of an offence against this section.

(3) The education authority by whom an attendance notice is served upon any young person shall serve a copy thereof upon any person who notifies the authority that the young person is employed by him.

(4) The Secretary of State may by regulations make provision as to the form of attendance notices, as to consultation and the exchange of information between education authorities, as to the issue of certificates of exemption in respect of young persons who are exempt from compulsory attendance at a junior college, and generally for the purpose of facilitating the administration by education authorities of the provisions of this Act as to attendance at junior colleges.

(5) The Secretary of State shall give directions to education authorities and to the Manpower Services Commission for ensuring due consultation and exchange of information between education authorities and the Commission.

47 Enforcement of attendance at junior colleges

(1) Any person guilty of an offence against either section 45 or 46 of this Act shall be liable on conviction by a court of summary jurisdiction in the case of a first offence against that section to a fine not exceeding £1, in the case of a second offence against that section to a fine not exceeding £5, and in the case of a third or subsequent offence against that section to a fine not exceeding £10 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding one month or to both such fine and such imprisonment.

(2) If, in furnishing any information for the purposes of either section 45 or 46 of this Act, any person makes any statement which he knows to be false in any material particular, or recklessly makes any statement which is false in any material particular, he shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding £20 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding three months or to both such fine and such imprisonment.

(3) If the parent of a young person or any person by whom a young person is employed or the servant or agent of any such person has connived at any offence committed by the young person against either section 45 or 46 of this Act, the person who has connived at the offence shall, whether or not any person is proceeded against or convicted in respect of the offence connived at, be guilty of the like offence and punishable accordingly.

48 Power to require attendance of unemployed young persons at junior colleges

(1) If any young person is capable of and available for work but has no work or only part-time or intermittent work, the Secretary of State may require his attendance in accordance with regulations at any junior college at which he can reasonably be expected to attend.

(2) If any young person whose attendance at a junior college has been required by the Secretary of State under this section fails, except by reason of sickness or other unavoidable cause, to attend at that college, he shall be liable on conviction by a court of summary jurisdiction in the case of a first offence to a fine not exceeding £1, in the case of a second offence to a fine not exceeding £5, and in the case of a third or subsequent offence to a fine not exceeding £10 or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding one month or to both such fine and such imprisonment.

(3) For the purposes of subsection (2) above and of any such proceedings as are therein mentioned, a young person who, by reason of his misbehaviour while attending at a junior college, has been required to discontinue his attendance thereat for any period shall be deemed to have failed without unavoidable cause to attend at that college.

(4) An education authority shall have power to assist the Secretary of State with respect to the attendance at junior colleges of young persons who may be, or have been, required by the Secretary of State under this section to attend thereat.

(5) Regulations made by the Secretary of State under this section shall make provision as to the functions to be performed by education authorities with respect to young persons required under this section to attend at junior colleges, and, in particular, shall direct such authorities to make in any attendance notice served on any such young person such modifications as may be provided by the regulations, and shall make provision as to the circumstances in which and the extent to which attendances in pursuance of requirements under this section may be reckoned as attendances in pursuance of the requirements of attendance notices.

(6) The aforesaid regulations may make provision for the establishment of boards of assessors for the purpose of reporting to the Secretary of State as to the advisability of requiring young persons to attend at a junior college.