Education Act 1902
| Jurisdiction | UK Non-devolved |
| Citation | 1902 c. 42 |
Education Act, 1902
(2 Edw. 7.) CHAPTER 42.
An Act to make farther provision with respect to Education in England and Wales.
[18th December 1902]
B E it enacted by the King's most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:
Part I.
Local Education Authority.
1 Local education authorities.
1. For the purposes of this Act, the council of every county and of every county borough shall be the local education authority:
Provided that the council of a borough with a population of over ten thousand or of an urban district with a population of over twenty thousand shall, as respects that borough or district, be the local education authority for the purpose of Part III. of this Act, and for that purpose, as respects that borough or district, the expression ‘local education authority’ means the council of that borough or district.
Part II.
Higher Education.
2 Power to aid higher education.
(1) The local education authority shall consider the educational needs of their area and take such steps as seem to them desirable, after consultation with the Board of Education, to supply or aid the supply of education other than elementary, and to promote the general co-ordination of all forms of education, and for that purpose shall apply all or so much as they deem necessary of the residue under section one of the Local Taxation (Customs and Excise) Act, 1890 , and shall carry forward for the like purpose any balance thereof which may remain unexpended, and may spend such further sums as they think fit: Provided that the amount raised by the council of a county for the purpose in any year out of rates under this Act shall not exceed the amount which would be produced by a rate of twopence in the pound, or such higher rate as the county council, with the consent of the Local Government Board, may fix.
(2) A council, in exercising their powers under this Part of this Act, shall have regard to any existing supply of efficient schools or colleges, and to any steps already taken for the purposes of higher education under the Technical Instruction Acts, 1889 and 1891 .
3 Concurrent powers of smaller boroughs and urban districts.
3. The council of any non-county borough or urban district shall have power, as well as the county council, to spend such sums as they think fit for the purpose of supplying or aiding the supply of education other than elementary: Provided that the amount raised by the council of a non-county borough or urban district for the purpose in any year out of rates under this Act shall not exceed the amount which would be produced by a rate of one penny in the pound.
4 Religious instruction.
(1) A council, in the application of money under this Part of this Act, shall not require that any particular form of religious instruction or worship or any religious catechism or formulary which is distinctive of any particular denomination shall or shall not be taught, used or practised in any school, college or hostel aided but not provided by the council, and no pupil shall, on the ground of religious belief, be excluded from or placed in an inferior position in any school, college or hostel provided by the council, and no catechism or formulary distinctive of any particular religious denomination shall be taught in any school, college or hostel so provided, except in cases where the council, at the request of parents of scholars, at such times and under such conditions as the council think desirable, allow any religious instruction to be given in the school, college or hostel otherwise than at the cost of the council: Provided that, in the exercise of this power, no unfair preference shall be shown to any religious denomination.
(2) In a school or college receiving a grant from, or maintained by, a council under this Part of this Act,
(a ) A scholar attending as a day or evening scholar shall not be required, as a condition of being admitted into or remaining in the school or college, to attend or abstain from attending any Sunday school, place of religious worship, religious observance or instruction in religious subjects in the school or college or elsewhere; and
The times for religious worship or for any lesson on a religious subject shall be conveniently arranged for the purpose of allowing the withdrawal of any such scholar therefrom.
Part III.
Elementary Education.
5 Powers and duties as to elementary education.
5. The local education authority shall, throughout their area, have the powers and duties of a school board and school attendance committee under the Elementary Education Acts, 1870 to 19 and any other Acts, including local Acts, and shall also be responsible for and have the control of all secular instruction in public elementary schools not provided by them; and school boards and school attendance committees shall be abolished.
6 Management of schools.
(1) All public elementary schools provided by the local education authority shall, where the local education authority are the council of a county, have a body of managers consisting of a number of managers not exceeding four appointed by that council, together with a number not exceeding two appointed by the minor local authority.
Where the local education authority are the council of a borough or urban district they may, if they think fit, appoint for any school provided by them a body of managers consisting of such number of managers as they may determine.
(2) All public elementary schools not provided by the local education authority shall, in place of the existing managers, have a body of managers consisting of a number of foundation managers not exceeding four, appointed as provided by this Act, together with a number of managers not exceeding two, appointed—
(a ) where the local education authority are the council of a county, one by that council and one by the minor local authority; and
(b ) where the local education authority are the council of a borough or urban district, both by that authority.
(3) Notwithstanding anything in this section—
(a ) Schools may be grouped under one body of managers in manner provided by this Act; and
(b ) Where the local education authority consider that the circumstances of any school require a larger body of managers than that provided under this section, that authority may increase the total number of managers, so, however, that the number of each class of managers is proportionately increased.
7 Maintenance of schools.
(1) The local education authority shall maintain and keep efficient all public elementary schools within their area which are necessary, and have the control of all expenditure required for that purpose, other than expenditure for which, under this Act, provision is to be made by the managers; but, in the case of a school not provided by them, only so long as the following conditions and provisions are complied with:—
(a ) The managers of the school shall carry out any directions of the local education authority as to the secular instruction to be given in the school, including any directions with respect to the number and educational qualifications of the teachers to be employed for such instruction, and for the dismissal of any teacher on educational grounds; and, if the managers fail to carry out any such direction, the local education authority shall, in addition to their other powers, have the power themselves to carry out the direction in question as if they were the managers; but no direction given under this provision shall be such as to interfere with reasonable facilities for religious instruction during school hours;
(b ) The local education authority shall have power to inspect the school;
(c ) The consent of the local education authority shall be required to the appointment of teachers, but that consent shall not be withheld except on educational grounds; and the consent of the authority shall also be required to the dismissal of a teacher, unless the dismissal be on grounds connected with the giving of religious instruction in the school;
(d ) The managers of the school shall provide the school house free of any charge, except for the teacher's dwelling-house (if any), to the local education authority for use as a public elementary school, and shall, out of funds provided by them, keep the school house in good repair, and make such alterations and improvements in the buildings as may be reasonably required by the local education authority: Provided that such damage as the local authority consider to be due to fair wear and tear in the use of any room in the school house for the purpose of a public elementary school shall be made good by the local education authority;
(e ) The managers of the school shall, if the local education authority have no suitable accommodation in schools provided by them, allow that authority to use any room in the school house out of school hours free of charge for any educational purpose, but this obligation shall not extend to more than three days in the week.
(2) The managers of a school maintained, but not provided by the local education authority, in respect of the use by them of the school furniture out of school hours, and the local education authority, in respect of the use by them of any room in the school house out of school hours, shall be liable to make good any damage caused to the furniture or the room, as the case may be, by reason of that use (other than damage...
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