New Clause 4 - Procedure for making certain orders specifying learning and development requirements
Childcare Bill
Public Bill Committees, 20 December 2005, 10:00 am
‘(1)This section applies where the Secretary of State proposes to make an order under section 39(1)(a) specifying early learning goals or educational programmes.
(2)The Secretary of State must give notice of the proposal—
(a)to such bodies representing the interests of early years providers as the Secretary of State considers appropriate, and
(b)to any other persons with whom consultation appears to the Secretary of State to be desirable,
and must give them a reasonable opportunity of submitting evidence and representations as to the issues arising.
(3)When the Secretary of State has considered any evidence and representations submitted to him in pursuance of subsection (2), he must publish in such manner as, in his opinion, is likely to bring them to the notice of persons having a special interest in early years provision—
(a)a draft of the proposed order and any associated document, and
(b)a summary of the views expressed during the consultation.
(4)The Secretary of State must allow a period of not less than one month beginning with the publication of the draft of the proposed order for the submission of any further evidence and representations as to the issues arising.
(5)When the period so allowed has expired, the Secretary of State may make the order, with or without modifications.’. —[Maria Eagle.]
Maria Eagle (Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Children and Families), Department for Education and Skills; Liverpool, Garston, Labour)
I beg to move, That the clause be read a Second time.
David Amess (Southend West, Conservative)
With this it will be convenient to discuss Government new clause 5—Determination of whether prescribed requirements for registration are satisfied.
Maria Eagle (Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Children and Families), Department for Education and Skills; Liverpool, Garston, Labour)
The two new clauses deal with slightly different things. New clause 4 requires the Secretary of State to consult representative organisations and to provide all those with an interest in early years with an opportunity to make representations on the order specifying the early learning goals or educational programmes under clause 39(1)(a).
I hope that the new clause will be welcomed by members of the Committee and others with an interest in the matter. It is based on section 96 of the Education Act 2002, which sets out a similar process for the Secretary of State to follow when making certain orders and regulations in relation to the national curriculum, including the current foundation stage. It seemed sensible to have such an arrangement and a duty replicated as far as possible in respect of the development of the early years foundation stage. That is why we want to include the new clause. I hope that it will reassure hon. Members that the Government intend fully to consult those who have an interest. There has been a lot of interest in the early years foundation stage. I hope that the new clause provides an extra assurance that we intend to consult properly.
New clause 5 sets out that Ofsted may, if regulations so provide, deem a person to be unsuitable and to cancel or refuse registration when consent for third party checks is refused or withdrawn. That means that if Ofsted wants to check information from a third party which requires the consent of the individual seeking to be registered and that consent is refused or withdrawn, it need not look further but can, at that point, deem a person to be unsuitable and cancel or refuse the registration without having to go through the entire process to the end and have potential appeals. That retains the status quo. Without the provision, it is impossible for Ofsted to make decisions about the suitability of a person for registration if it cannot get hold of the third party information—for example, through Criminal Records Bureau checks—that it needs. In such cases, it seems sensible that Ofsted can refuse to register the person.
These matters were overlooked—I suppose that is the best way of putting it—during the complicated business of writing legislation to tight deadlines. With those explanations, I hope that the Committee will accept the new clauses.