Education (Scotland) Act 1918
| Jurisdiction | UK Non-devolved |
| Citation | 1918 c. 48 |
Education (Scotland) Act, 1918
(8 & 9 Geo. 5.) CHAPTER 48.
An Act to make further provision with respect to Education in Scotland and for purposes connected therewith.
[21st November 1918]
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:
Education Authorities .
Education Authorities .
1 Education authorities.
1. A local authority for the purposes of education (in this Act called the ‘education authority’) shall be elected in and for each of the following areas (in this Act called ‘education areas’), that is to say, in and for—
2 Electoral divisions and constitution of authorities.
(1) For the purpose of such elections, the Secretary for Scotland shall, as soon as may be after the passing of this Act, by order divide each education area into electoral divisions, and in determining the boundaries thereof, he shall have regard, so far as may be, to the boundaries of wards in scheduled burghs, and of districts, burghs and parishes in counties.
(2) The Secretary for Scotland shall also by order determine the number of members to be elected to each education authority, and shall apportion them among the electoral divisions of the education area. In making such determination and apportionment the Secretary for Scotland shall have regard to the population, area, and other circumstances of the scheduled burgh or county, as the case may be, and the electoral divisions thereof.
(3) Before making an order under this section, the Secretary for Scotland shall cause the proposed order to be published in such manner as to make the same known to all persons interested, and shall, after considering any objections and representations respecting the proposed order, and causing a local inquiry to be held if he sees fit to do so, thereafter make the order and cause the same to be forthwith published in the Edinburgh Gazette and in a newspaper circulating in the education area.
3 School management committees.
(1) It shall be the duty of every education authority to prepare and submit to the Department for their approval a scheme or schemes for the constitution of committees (in this Act called ‘school management committees’) for the management of schools or groups of schools under their control throughout their education area.
Every such scheme shall contain provision—
(a ) for the due representation on each school management committee of the education authority and of the parents of the children attending the schools under the management of such committee; and
(b ) for the appointment thereto, on the nomination of the teachers engaged in the schools under the management of such committee, or, failing such nomination, directly, of at least one such teacher; and also
(c ) in the case of a school management committee having under its management one or more transferred schools, for the appointment thereto of at least one member in whose selection regard shall be had to the religious belief of the parents of the children attending such school or schools.
Further, in the case of a county, every such scheme shall have regard to the desirability of constituting separate school management committees for individual burghs and parishes, and shall provide for the appointment thereto, on the nomination of local bodies (including town and parish councils and at the first constitution outgoing school boards), or, failing such nomination, directly, of persons resident in the locality and otherwise qualified to represent local interests in school management.
(2) A school management committee shall, subject except as hereinafter provided to any regulations and restrictions made by the education authority, have all the powers and duties of that authority in regard to the general management and supervision of the school or group of schools, including attendance thereat:
Provided that in the case of a county a school management committee having under its management a secondary school shall have all the said powers and duties not subject to any such regulations or restrictions:
Provided further that the education authority shall in every case themselves retain, exercise, and perform all their powers and duties in regard to—
(a ) the raising of money by rate or loan and the general control of expenditure;
(b ) the acquisition or holding of land;
(c ) the appointment, transfer, remuneration and dismissal of teachers;
(d ) the appointment of bursars, and the exercise of the powers conferred by the section of this Act relating to power to facilitate attendance at secondary schools and other institutions; and
(e ) the recognition, establishment, or discontinuance of intermediate or secondary schools or of centres of advanced technical instruction.
Powers and Duties of Education Authorities .
Powers and Duties of Education Authorities .
4 Power to facilitate attendance at secondary schools and other institutions.
(1) It shall be lawful for an education authority, with a view to securing that no child or young person resident in their education area who is qualified for attendance at an intermediate or secondary school, and in their opinion formed after consideration of a report from the teachers concerned shows promise of profiting thereby, shall be debarred therefrom by reason of the expense involved, to grant assistance in the case of any such child or young person by payment of travelling expenses, or of fees, or of the cost of residence in a hostel, or of a bursary or maintenance allowance, or any combination of these forms of assistance, or otherwise, as the authority think fit. And it shall also be lawful for an education authority similarly to assist any duly qualified person resident in their education area to enter or attend a university, or a training college, or a central institution (including classes affiliated thereto), or in special cases any other educational institution approved for the purpose by the Department.
(2) It shall further be lawful for an education authority to grant assistance by payment of travelling expenses necessarily incurred in the case of any person resident in their education area in attending continuation classes under a scheme for instruction in such classes as in this Act provided.
(3) Any assistance granted under this section shall be such as the education authority consider proper and necessary, having regard to the circumstances of each case, including the circumstances of the parents.
5 Provision of books for general reading.
5. It shall be lawful for the education authority of a county, as an ancillary means of promoting education, to make such provision of books by purchase or otherwise as they may think desirable, and to make the same available not only to the children and young persons attending schools or continuation classes in the county, but also to the adult population resident therein.
For the purposes of this section an education authority may enter into arrangements with public libraries, and all expenses incurred by an education authority for those purposes shall be chargeable to the county education fund: Provided that where in any burgh or parish as defined by the Public Libraries Consolidation (Scotland) Act, 1887, the library rate by that Act authorised is levied, there shall be raised within such burgh or parish on account of any such expenses such sum as will, with the produce of the said library rate, amount to the sum which would have been raised within such burgh or parish under this section had such library rate not been levied within it.
6 Schemes for provision of education.
(1) It shall be the duty of every education authority within twelve months after the appointed day to prepare and submit for the approval of the Department—
(a ) a scheme for the adequate provision throughout the education area of the authority of all forms of primary, intermediate and secondary education in day schools (including adequate provision for teaching Gaelic in Gaelic-speaking areas) without payment of fees, and if the authority think fit for the maintenance or support (in addition and without prejudice to such adequate provision as aforesaid) of a limited number of schools where fees are charged in some or all of the classes;
(b ) a scheme for the exercise by the education authority of their powers under the section of this Act relating to power to facilitate attendance at secondary schools and other institutions, together with an estimate of the expenditure involved therein; and
(c ) a scheme of scales of salaries for the teachers employed by the authority satisfying such conditions as to minimum national scales of salaries for teachers as may be laid down by the Department after consultation with representatives of the education authorities and of the teaching profession; provided that such minimum scales of salaries shall be independent of any payment made to teachers out of any bequest or endowment, the object of which is to secure special emoluments to any class of teachers or to the teachers of any special locality.
(2) Every education authority may at any time, and shall if and when so required be the Department, prepare...
To continue reading
Request your trial