PART I

Preliminary and General

1. —(1) This Act may be cited as the Education Act, 1998.

(2) Subject to subsection (3), this Act shall come into operation on such day or days as, by order or orders made by the Minister under this section, may be fixed either generally or with reference to any particular purpose, function, provision or class of school, and different days may be so fixed for different purposes, functions or provisions of this Act or different classes of schools.

(3) This Act shall come into operation in respect of any purpose, function, provision or class of school, with reference to which the Minister has not made an order under subsection (2), two years from the date of its passing.

(4) As soon as practicable after the end of the first and second years following the date of passing of this Act, the Minister shall prepare a report on the implementation of the Act and shall cause copies of the report to be laid before each House of the Oireachtas.

(5) The Intermediate Education (Ireland) Acts, 1878 to 1924 and this Act may be cited together as the Education Acts, 1878 to 1998, and shall be construed together as one.

2. —(1) In this Act, except where the context otherwise requires—

“articles of management” means any instruments, relating to the operation and management of schools, as are in operation on the commencement of this Act and as shall be agreed from time to time by patrons of schools, national associations of parents and recognised trade unions and staff associations representing teachers;

“board” means a board of management established under section 14 ;

“centre for education” means a place, other than a school or a place providing university or other third level education, where adult or continuing education or vocational education or training, is provided and which is designated for that purpose under section 10 (4);

“characteristic spirit” means the characteristic spirit referred to in section 15 (2) (b);

“Council” means the body established under section 39 ;

“curriculum” shall be construed in accordance with section 30 ;

“disability” means—

(a) the total or partial loss of a person's bodily or mental functions, including the loss of a part of the person's body, or

(b) the presence in the body of organisms causing, or likely to cause, chronic disease or illness, or

(c) the malfunction, malformation or disfigurement of a part of a person's body, or

(d) a condition or malfunction which results in a person learning differently from a person without the condition or malfunction, or

(e) a condition, illness or disease which affects a person's thought processes, perception of reality, emotions or judgement or which results in disturbed behaviour;

“educational disadvantage” has the meaning assigned by section 32 (9);

“examination” has the meaning assigned to it by section 49 ;

“functions” includes powers and duties;

“Gaeltacht area” means an area for the time being determined to be a Gaeltacht area by order made under section 2 of the Ministers and Secretaries (Amendment) Act, 1956 ;

“Inspector” means a member of the Inspectorate;

“Inspectorate” means the Inspectorate appointed under section 13 ;

“Minister” means the Minister for Education and Science;

“national association of parents” means an association or other body of persons established by parents with objects which include representing the views and interests of parents with regard to education and assisting parents in exercising their rights and role in the process of the education of their children, that is—

(a) established and organised on a national basis and has a membership distributed over a substantial part of the State, and

(b) for the time being recognised by the Minister for the purposes of this Act, including the National Parents Council - Primary and the National Parents Council (Post-Primary) Limited, being bodies for the time being so recognised;

“National Council for Curriculum and Assessment” means the body established in accordance with section 39 ;

“parent” includes a foster parent, a guardian appointed under the Guardianship of Children Acts, 1964 to 1997, or other person acting in loco parentis who has a child in his or her care subject to any statutory power or order of a court and, in the case of a child who has been adopted under the Adoption Acts, 1952 to 1998, or, where the child has been adopted outside the State, means the adopter or adopters or the surviving adopter;

“parents' association” means an association to which section 26 applies;

“patron” has the meaning assigned to it by section 8 ;

“prescribed” means prescribed by regulations made by the Minister and cognate words shall be construed accordingly;

“Principal” means a person appointed under section 23 ;

“recognised school” means a school which is recognised by the Minister in accordance with section 10 ;

“recognised school management organisations” means those bodies as may be established for the purpose of representing the interests of persons engaged in the management of schools and which are recognised by the Minister for the purposes of this Act;

“recognised trade union” means a trade union licensed under the Trade Union Acts, 1871 to 1990, that stands recognised for consultation purposes;

“school” means an establishment which—

(a) provides primary education to its students and which may also provide early childhood education, or

(b) provides post-primary education to its students and which may also provide courses in adult, continuing or vocational education or vocational training,

but does not include a school or institution established in accordance with the Children Acts, 1908 to 1989, or a school or institution established or maintained by a health board in accordance with the Health Acts, 1947 to 1996, or the Child Care Act, 1991 ;

“school plan” has the meaning assigned to it by section 21 (1);

“school week” means the period of time during a week when a school is open for the reception of students;

“school year” means such twelve month period commencing on a day that falls between the first day of July and the first day of October in any year as may be prescribed from time to time by the Minister, either generally or in respect of any school or class of school;

“special educational needs” means the educational needs of students who have a disability and the educational needs of exceptionally able students;

“student”, in relation to a school, means a person enrolled at the school and in relation to a centre for education, means a person registered as a student in that centre;

“support services” means the services which the Minister provides to students or their parents, schools or centres for education in accordance with section 7 and shall include any or all of the following:

(a) assessment of students;

(b) psychological services;

(c) guidance and counselling services;

(d) technical aid and equipment, including means of access to schools, adaptations to buildings to facilitate access and transport, for students with special needs and their families;

(e) provision for students learning through Irish sign language or other sign language, including interpreting services;

(f) speech therapy services;

(g) provision for early childhood, primary, post-primary, adult or continuing education to students with special needs otherwise than in schools or centres for education;

(h) teacher welfare services;

(i) transport services;

(j) library and media services;

(k) school maintenance services;

(l) examinations provided for in Part VIII ;

(m) curriculum support and staff advisory services, and

(n) such other services as are specified by this Act or considered appropriate by the Minister;

“teacher” includes a Principal;

“vocational education committee” means a committee established by section 7 of the Vocational Education Act, 1930 .

(2) (a) In this Act a reference to a Part, section or a Schedule is a reference to a Part or section of or a Schedule to this Act, unless it is indicated that a reference to some other Act is intended.

(b) In this Act a reference to a subsection, paragraph or subparagraph is a reference to a subsection, paragraph or subparagraph of the provision in which the reference occurs, unless it is indicated that a reference to some other pro-vision is intended.

(3) A reference in this Act to the performance of functions includes, with respect to powers and duties, a reference to the exercise of powers and the carrying out of duties.

3. —Any expenses incurred by the Minister in the administration of this Act shall, to such extent as may be approved of by the Minister for Finance, be paid out of monies provided by the Oireachtas.

4. —Where a notice, direction or other document is authorised or required by or under this Act or regulations made thereunder to be served on a person, it shall, unless otherwise specified in this Act, be addressed to the person and shall be served on or given to the person in one of the following ways—

(a) where it is addressed to the person by name, by delivering it to the person, or

(b) by leaving it at the address at which the person ordinarily resides or, in a case in which an address for service has been furnished, at that address, or

(c) by sending it by ordinary prepaid post addressed to the person at the address at which the person ordinarily resides, or in a case in which an address for service has been furnished, at that address.

5. —Every regulation and every order made under this Act shall be laid before each House of the Oireachtas as soon as may be after it is made and, if a resolution annulling the regulation or order is passed by either such House within the next 21 days on which that House has sat after the regulation or order is laid before it, the regulation or order shall be annulled accordingly, but without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done thereunder.

6. —Every person concerned in the implementation of this Act shall have regard to the following objects in pursuance of which the Oireachtas has enacted this Act:

(a) to give practical effect to the constitutional rights of children, including children who have a disability or who have other special educational needs, as they relate to education;

(b) to provide that, as far as is practicable and having regard to the resources available, there is made available to people resident in the State a level and quality of education appropriate to meeting the needs and abilities of those people;

(c) to promote equality of access to and participation in education and to promote the means whereby students may benefit from education;

(d) to promote opportunities for adults, in particular adults who as children did not avail of or benefit from education in schools, to avail of educational opportunities through adult and continuing education;

(e) to promote the right of parents to send their children to a school of the parents’ choice having regard to the rights of patrons and the effective and efficient use of resources;

(f) to promote best practice in teaching methods with regard to the diverse needs of students and the development of the skills and competences of teachers;

(g) to promote effective liaison and consultation between schools and centres for education, patrons, teachers, parents, the communities served by schools, local authorities, health boards, persons or groups of persons who have a special interest in, or experience of, the education of students with special educational needs and the Minister;

(h) to contribute to the realisation of national educational policies and objectives;

(i) to contribute to the realisation of national policy and objectives in relation to the extension of bi-lingualism in Irish society and in particular the achievement of a greater use of the Irish language at school and in the community;

(j) to contribute to the maintenance of Irish as the primary community language in Gaeltacht areas;

(k) to promote the language and cultural needs of students having regard to the choices of their parents;

(l) to enhance the accountability of the education system, and

(m) to enhance transparency in the making of decisions in the education system both locally and nationally.

7. —(1) Each of the following shall be a function of the Minister under this Act:

(a) to ensure, subject to the provisions of this Act, that there is made available to each person resident in the State, including a person with a disability or who has other special educational needs, support services and a level and quality of education appropriate to meeting the needs and abilities of that person,

(b) to determine national education policy, and

(c) to plan and co-ordinate—

(i) the provision of education in recognised schools and centres for education, and

(ii) support services.

(2) Without prejudice to the generality of subsection (1), each of the following shall be a function of the Minister:

(a) to provide funding to each recognised school and centre for education and to provide support services to recognised schools, centres for education, students, including students who have a disability or who have other special educational needs, and their parents, as the Minister considers appropriate and in accordance with this Act;

(b) to monitor and assess the quality, economy, efficiency and effectiveness of the education system provided in the State by recognised schools and centres for education, having regard to the objects provided for in section 6 and to publish, in such manner as the Minister considers appropriate, information relating to such monitoring and assessment;

(c) to lease land or buildings to any person or body of persons for the purpose of establishing a school without prejudice to the establishment by patrons of schools which are situated on land or in buildings which are not leased to them by the Minister, the extension and further development of such schools when established and the recognition of such schools in accordance with section 10 ;

(d) to provide support services through Irish to recognised schools which provide teaching through Irish and to any other recognised school which requests such provision;

(e) to perform such other functions as are specifically provided for by this Act or any other enactment, and

(f) to do all such acts and things as may be necessary to further the objects for which this Act is enacted.

(3) The Minister shall have all such powers as are necessary or expedient for the purpose of performing his or her functions.

(4) In carrying out his or her functions, the Minister—

(a) shall have regard to—

(i) the resources available,

(ii) the provision for education and training made by other agencies with funds provided by the Oireachtas,

(iii) the need to reflect the diversity of educational services provided in the State, and

(iv) the practices and traditions relating to the organisation of schools or groups of schools existing at the commencement of this Part and the right of schools to manage their own affairs in accordance with this Act and any charters, deeds, articles of management or other such instruments relating to their establishment or operation,

and

(b) shall make all reasonable efforts to consult with patrons, national associations of parents, parents’ associations in schools, recognised school management organisations, recognised trade unions and staff associations representing teachers and such other persons who have a special interest in or knowledge of matters relating to education, including persons or groups of persons who have a special interest in, or experience of, the education of students with special educational needs, as the Minister considers appropriate.