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New Law for Views in Schools
The law has been changed so schools now have a legal obligation to consider the views of children and young people
PRESS RELEASE
For immediate release
Schools must consider the views of students
After decades of campaigning by children's rights advocates, the law was finally changed in November to place a duty on all maintained schools in England and Wales to consider the views of children and young people. Carolyne Willow, CRAE's national coordinator, said:
This is a historic moment that we have worked for years to achieve. It was simply unacceptable that schools should have no legal obligation to consider children's views. This change in the law should help transform the culture of schools, with children being firmly at the centre of policy and practice. Progressive educationalists will be delighted too; for them there is no question that children should have their views taken into account.
Many Parliamentarians have supported law reform though it was undoubtedly the steadfast efforts of Baroness Joan Walmsley, Liberal Democrat Peer and CRAE Patron, that secured the change.
The move is one of the first major actions to protect children's rights taken by new children's minister Baroness Delyth Morgan of Drefelin. The minister explained:
… I am sure that the whole House will agree that the voice of pupils and young people is extremely important … The new duty in these amendments sends a clear message about the importance that we place on the involvement of pupils, which the Children’s Rights Alliance for England also eloquently advocates, in matters that affect their education and school life. Through regulations, we intend to require governing bodies to invite views on a core set of policy matters. As a minimum, schools should seek and take account of pupils’ views on policies on the delivery of the curriculum, behaviour, the uniform, school food, health and safety, equalities and sustainability, not simply on what colour to paint the walls.
Notes
1. The provisions are introduced as new Section 29A of the Education Act 2002. They require the governing body of a maintained school to invite and consider the views of pupils about prescribed matters. Prescribed matters will be set out in regulations and are broadly ‘the exercise, or proposed exercise, of a function of the governing body of a maintained school relating to the conduct of the school [and] the exercise, or proposed exercise, of such a function in a particular way’.
2. The consultation on the regulations will take place in Spring 2009. CRAE will be pushing for the widest scope including, for example, the recruitment of staff and budget allocation. Section 29A of the 2002 Act is expected to come into force soon after the completion of the consultation: the minister assured parliament that ‘we do not intend to drag our heels’.
3. The lack of participation rights for school students was raised by the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child in its concluding observations on the UK issued on 3 October 2008 (as well as in 2002 and 1995).
4. As part of Participation Works, CRAE appointed a dedicated post holder in 2007 to lead lobbying on this and other policy developments. Visit www.participationworks.org.uk
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