The Education (Induction Arrangements for School Teachers) (Wales) Regulations 2005

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations revoke and replace the Education (Induction Arrangements for School Teachers) (Wales) Regulations 2003, as amended. The provisions of the 2003 Regulations are largely re-enacted, save as explained below.

Persons who qualified as teachers after 1 April 2003 must complete an induction period before they can be employed as teachers at a school maintained by an LEA or a special school not so maintained (“a relevant school”).

This requirement does not apply to persons specified in Schedule 1 to the Regulations. These include teachers serving induction; teachers who are not required to be qualified teachers; teachers who have successfully completed an induction period or probation period elsewhere in the United Kingdom; certain teachers who are qualified by virtue of employment as teachers in independent schools or in further education colleges; teachers who are not required to serve induction under corresponding regulations applying in England; qualified teachers from the European Union, Norway, Liechtenstein, Iceland or Switzerland; overseas teachers who qualified overseas, who have at least two years teaching experience and qualified on the employment based teacher training scheme and have been assessed as meeting the induction standards.

A new exception is added to Schedule 1, which will cover certain experienced teachers from the further education sector and independent schools. These are teachers who qualified on the employment based teacher training scheme and who were assessed under that scheme as meeting the standards for qualified teachers without having been required to undertake further training under the scheme, and who have been assessed as meeting the induction standards.

The provisions in relation to short term supply teaching have also been amended. A person will now be able to work as a short term supply teacher without serving induction for a period of five years from the date he or she qualified. After that time an appropriate body will be able to authorise a person to work for a further 12 months as a short-term supply teacher without serving induction where circumstances materially affected a person’s ability to serve an induction period. Once those 12 months have expired, an appropriate body will be able to authorise further employment as a short term supply teacher but only with the Assembly’s consent.

An induction period may be served in a relevant school (other than a hospital school) or an independent school provided its curriculum meets certain requirements of the National Curriculum.

An induction period may not be served in a pupil referral unit nor in a school requiring special measures unless the person in question started his or her induction period or was employed on an employment based training programme before the school was found to be in need of special measures, or one of Her Majesty’s Inspectors of Education and Training in Wales certifies that the school is fit to provide induction. New provision is made allowing induction to be served in an FE college. Previously induction could only be served in a sixth form college.

Amended provision is made in regulations 8 and 9 in relation to the length of an induction period and the periods of employment that can count towards an induction period. As a general rule, an induction period must last three school terms, but need not do so where the school year at a school or college does not consist of three terms, where a person serves induction on a part time basis or where the appropriate body does not consider it appropriate for the three term rule to apply. In such cases the appropriate body has the discretion to determine the length of the induction period.

As a general rule, a person must work for a full term in order for that period of employment to count towards an induction period. The full term rule does not apply where a person is employed for two consecutive half terms or where the appropriate body considers that it is appropriate to count another period of employment towards an induction period.

Amended provision is also made in regulation 10 in relation to extending an induction period before its completion. The appropriate body is given the power to extend an induction period if a person has been absent from work for 30 or more school days.

The detailed requirements in relation to supervision and training have been taken out of the regulations.

The National Assembly for Wales is given the power to set the standards against which teachers serving induction periods are to be assessed for the purpose of determining whether they have completed their induction periods successfully. The National Assembly has issued such standards which can be found at www.learning.wales.gov.uk.

At the end of the induction period the head teacher of the school or college at which the teacher is employed makes a recommendation to the appropriate body, and that body decides whether a person has successfully completed induction, whether he or she should have their induction period extended or whether he or she has failed to complete induction successfully. A person whose induction period has been extended or who has failed to complete induction successfully can appeal to the General Teaching Council for Wales. Schedule 2 sets out the procedure for such appeals.

Any person exercising functions under these Regulations must have regard to guidance issued by the Assembly. This guidance can be found at www.learning.wales.gov.uk. In particular guidance is given on the exercise of the new discretion given to appropriate bodies in regulations 8, 9, 10 and 18, and on the performance of the duty imposed in regulation 12 on head teachers and appropriate bodies in relation to a person’s supervision and training during the induction period.