The Education (Pupil Information) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2008

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of these Regulations)

The Regulations amend the Education (Pupil Information) (England) Regulations 2005 (“the principal Regulations”). The principal amendments—

(a) insert additional provisions into the interpretation provisions of the principal Regulations setting out the meaning of “P Level attainment targets”, “P Levels of attainment” and “P Level Document” (regulation 3). The P Levels apply to pupils with special educational needs who are working below level 1 of the National Curriculum. A copy of the P Level document in which the P Level attainment targets are specified and the P Levels of attainment are described can be viewed at this website:

http://www.qca.org.uk/qca_8541.aspx

(b) amend regulation 6 of the Principal Regulations so that where a school is a pupil referral unit the head teacher’s report only has to be prepared for the school year in which a pupil ceases to be of compulsory school age and need only contain limited information (regulation 4);

(c) amend regulation 9 of, and Schedule 2 to, the Principal Regulations to provide that where a pupil becomes registered at two schools maintained by a local education authority the governing body of the first school (or management committee in the case of a pupil referral unit) must send a copy of the common transfer file to the second school (regulation 5 and 7(b) and (c));

(d) require any assessment of a pupil’s P Levels of attainment (including performance against the P Level attainment targets in English and Mathematics where the pupils is working at P Level 4 or above in those subjects) to be included—

(i) in the head teacher’s annual report at the end of the first, second and third key stages (regulation 6); and

(ii) in the information forming part of the common transfer file (regulation 7(d)(i) and (iv));

where the pupil has special educational needs and is working below level 1 of the National Curriculum;

(e) require a pupil’s unique learner number (where one is known) to be included in the information forming part of the common transfer file (regulation 7(a));

(f) remove the requirement for the results of public examinations and vocational qualifications (or credits towards such qualifications) to be included in the common transfer file since it is not currently technically possible for this information to be so included (regulation 7(d)(ii));

(g) add to the exemption in paragraph 6(2) of Schedule 2 (pupils at the end of Key Stage 1 from 2004/5 onwards) pupils who were involved in the Key Stage 1 pilot in 2003/4 for whom there was no statutory requirement to undertake the tests (regulation 7(d)(iii)).

A full impact assessment has not been produced for this instrument as no impact on the private or voluntary sectors is foreseen.