Section 53 – Curriculum requirements
121.This section applies to local authorities that make arrangements under section 19A of the 1996 Act to provide education for children otherwise than at PRUs. Arrangements of this kind are made for a varied group of learners whose circumstances are often unique. For example, a learner may ordinarily attend a maintained school but for reasons of illness may be unable to attend for a period of time and may need to be taught at home or in hospital.
122.The range of circumstances that may need to be addressed under these arrangements makes it inappropriate and impractical to require a local authority to design a single, common curriculum for the education provided to this cohort of learners. Instead, the Act requires the local authority to ensure that the arrangements that it puts in place for a child’s education under section 19A of the 1996 Act secure a bespoke curriculum for that child that complies with the requirements in subsections (2) to (5).
123.The requirements in subsections (2) to (5) are that the curriculum for each child must:
enable the child to develop in the ways described in the four purposes;
provide for appropriate progression for the child;
be suitable for the child’s ability and aptitude;
be broad and balanced so far as is appropriate for the child;
provide, so far as is appropriate for the child, for teaching and learning that:
encompasses the Health and Well-being area of learning and experience;
encompasses the mandatory element of RSE in a developmentally appropriate way; and
develops the mandatory cross-curricular skills; and
provide, so far as is reasonably possible and appropriate, for teaching and learning in the other areas of learning and experience and the other mandatory elements.
124.The arrangements do not have to secure a curriculum for the child that encompasses all the areas of learning and experience and all the mandatory elements. The child’s curriculum must encompass Health and Well-being area of learning and experience and the mandatory element of RSE, but the intention is to allow the local authority to decide what is reasonably possible and appropriate to provide for the child in terms of teaching and learning in the other areas of learning and experience and the other mandatory elements.
