The following are just some of the questions raised with members of the education law team at 11KBW during March 2013:
- What are a local authority’s options where a pupil is absent from school for a long period and the reasons for this are unclear?
- What is the correct division of responsibilities between a local authority and a university where a disabled student needs assistance in accessing university facilities?
- What action can a local authority take if a newspaper publishes, without consent, pictures of pupils at a school with potential safeguarding issues?
- What is the legal position governing formal and informal work experience for school-age pupils?
- When is it necessary to conduct learning difficulty assessments for young people with special educational needs?
Last month’s update referred to the cross-over with employment law, but this month the cross-over with judicial review was a particular theme. One case involved a threatened judicial review of a local authority’s discharge of its community care duties which raised issued about funding for education provision and for speech and language therapy. Two other cases concerned claims alleging failures to implement tribunal decisions, one in respect of educational provision specified in part 3 and the other in respect of a refusal by a school named in part 4 to admit the child.
Other cases included:
- Section 316 of the Education Act 1996 (duty to education children with SEN in mainstream).
- Advice on the interpretation of regulations about school governors and associate members.
- Request by a further education college for advice on a potential challenge to a proposed re-organisation of neighbouring further education provision.
- Advice on TUPE issues arising out of academy conversions and community schools changing category to become foundation schools.
Paul Greatorex