New Schools (Admissions) (Wales) Regulations 1999
| Year | 1999 |
1999 No. 2800 (W. 14)
EDUCATION, WALES
The New Schools (Admissions) (Wales) Regulations 1999
Made 31th August 1999
Coming into force 1st September 1999
The National Assembly for Wales makes the following Regulations in exercise of the powers conferred on the Secretary of State by sections 72, and 138(7) and (8) of, and paragraph 1(9) of Schedule 10 to, the School Standards and Framework Act 19981, and now vested in the Assembly2:
Citation, commencement and application
1.—(1) These Regulations may be cited as the New Schools (Admissions) (Wales) Regulations 1999 and shall come into force on 1st September 1999.
(2) These Regulations apply in relation to a new school in Wales which, in the school year in which it will first admit pupils, is to be a community, foundation or voluntary school.
Interpretation
2.—(1) In these Regulations, unless the context otherwise requires —
“the 1996 Act” means the Education Act 19963;
“the 1998 Act” means the School Standards and Framework Act 1998;
“S.I. 1999/124” means the Education (Relevant Areas for Consultation on Admission Arrangements) Regulations 19994
“S.I. 1999/125” means the Education (Objections to Admissions Arrangements) Regulations 19995;
“S.I. 1999/362” means the Education (Transition to New Framework) (New Schools, Groups and Miscellaneous) Regulations 19996;
“S.I. 1999/704” means the Education (Transition to New Framework) (School Organisation Proposals) Regulations 19997;
“admission authority”, in relation to a new school, means the person or body responsible under regulation 3 for making the school’s initial admission arrangements;
“Assembly” means the National Assembly for Wales8;
“initial year”, in relation to a new school, means the school year in which pupils are (or it is intended, should be) admitted to the school;
“initial admission arrangements”, in relation to a new school, means the arrangements for the admission of children to the school (including the school’s admission policy) for the initial year;
“main entrance” means the principal entrance to the school premises in question, or (if the school has more than one site) to the principal entrance to the main administrative building of the school;
“maintained school” has the meaning given by section 84(6) of the 1998 Act;
“new school” has the meaning given by section 72(3) of the 1998 Act except that it includes a school or proposed school with a temporary governing body having the meaning given by these Regulations;
“school opening date”, in relation to a new school, means the date when the school first admits pupils;
“temporary governing body” means —
(i) a temporary governing body constituted under section 44 of the 1998 Act,
(ii) a transitional governing body treated as so constituted by virtue of regulation 13(5) of S.I. 1999/362, or (as the case may be)
(iii) a temporary governing body treated as so constituted by virtue of regulation 13 of S.I. 1999/704.
(2) Regulations 4, 5 and 6 shall not apply where the admission authority for a new school established as part of proposals involving the discontinuance of another school maintained by a local education authority determine that the initial admission arrangements shall be the same as those of that school.
Responsibility for initial admission arrangements
3.—(1) The initial admission arrangements for a new school which is to be a community or voluntary controlled school shall be made by —
(a)
(a) the local education authority, or
(b)
(b) the temporary governing body where, with the agreement of that body, the authority have delegated to them responsibility for determining those arrangements.
(2) The initial admission arrangements for a new school which is to be a foundation or voluntary aided school shall be made by —
(a)
(a) the temporary governing body, or
(b)
(b) the promoters where —
(i) that body is not yet constituted, and
(ii) the promoters consider it expedient for the admission arrangements to be determined without delay.
Procedure for determining admission arrangements
4.—(1) The admission authority for a new school shall determine the initial admission arrangements not less than six months in advance of the school opening date.
(2) Before determining the initial admission arrangements the admission authority shall, not less than nine months in advance of the school opening date, consult the following about the proposed arrangements, namely —
(a)
(a) the local education authority (where the temporary governing body or promoters are the admission authority), and
(b)
(b) the admission authorities for all other maintained schools in the relevant area.
(3) In paragraph (2) “the relevant area” shall be
(a)
(a) in the case of a school which will first admit pupils in any school year commencing earlier than 2001, the area described by a circle —
(i) of which the centre is the proposed main entrance to the new school; and
(ii) which has a radius of 4.83 kilometres (3 miles);
(b)
(b) in the case of a school which will first admit pupils in the school year commencing in 2001 or in any later school year, the relevant area or relevant areas determined by the local education authority in accordance with S.I. 1999/124.
(4) A school is only to be regarded as within the relevant area prescribed by paragraph (3)(a) if its main entrance lies within that area.
(5) In relation to the proposed initial admission arrangements for a primary school, paragraph (2) shall only require the admission authority to consult the admission authorities for other schools in the relevant area which are primary schools.
(6) Once any such consultation has been carried out, the admission authority shall —
(a)
(a) determine that their proposed arrangements (either in their original form or with such modifications as the authority think fit) shall be the initial admission arrangements; and
(b)
(b) notify the bodies whom they consulted under paragraph (2) of those arrangements.
(7) Where an admission authority —
(a)
(a) have in accordance with paragraph (6) determined the initial admission arrangements, but
(b)
(b) at any time before the end of the initial year consider that the arrangements should be varied in view of a major change of circumstances occurring since they were so determined,
the authority shall refer the proposed variations to the Assembly and shall (in every case) notify the bodies whom they consulted under subsection (2) of the proposed variations.
(8) The Assembly shall consider whether the arrangements should have effect with those variations until the end of the initial year; and if it determines that the arrangements should so have effect or that they should so have effect subject to such modification of those variations as it may determine —
(a)
(a) the arrangements shall have effect accordingly as from the date of its determination; and
(b)
(b) the admission authority shall notify the bodies whom they consulted under paragraph (2) of the variations subject to which the arrangements are to have effect;
save that nothing in this paragraph shall require the Assembly to make such determination before the proposals required to be published under section 28(1) and (2) of the 1998 Act have been approved in accordance with the provisions of Schedule 6 to that Act.
(9) Where the local education authority are the admission authority for a community or voluntary controlled school, they shall —
(a)
(a) when preparing for consultation under paragraph (2) their proposed initial admission arrangements for the initial year, consult the temporary governing body about the initial admission arrangements which the authority may propose for the school; and
(b)
(b) in addition consult the temporary governing body before making any reference under paragraph (7).
Reference of objections to the Assembly
5.—(1) Where—
(a)
(a) initial admission arrangements have been determined by an admission authority under regulation 4(6), but
(b)
(b) a body consulted by the admission authority under regulation 4(2) wish to make an objection about those arrangements, and
(c)
(c) the objection does not fall within any description of objections prescribed by regulation 2(2) of S.I. 1999/125,
that body may refer the objection to the Assembly.
(2) Subject to paragraph (3) an objection may not be referred under paragraph (1) unless it is received by the Assembly within 6 weeks after the receipt by the objecting admission authority of the notification required by virtue of regulation 4(6)(b).
(3) An objection which is received after the end of the period specified in paragraph (2) shall be regarded as properly referred if the Assembly is satisfied that it was not reasonably practicable for the objection to have been received earlier than the time when it was received.
(4) On a reference under paragraph (1) the Assembly shall decide whether, and (if so) to what...
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