Commentary on Sections Local education authority Legal background Chapter 1: Independent educational institutions in England
112.The definition of “independent school” in section 463 of the 1996 Act applies for the purposes of this Chapter (see section 168). Under that definition an “independent school” means “any school at which full-time education is provided for (a) five or more pupils of compulsory school age, or (b) at least one pupil of that age for whom a statement is maintained under section 324, or who is looked after by a local authority (within the meaning of section 22 of the Children Act 1989), and which is not a school maintained by a local education authority or a special school not so maintained.”
113.Sections 92 and 93 define the term “independent educational institution” and set out that Chapter 1 of Part 4 of this Act, which provides a revised framework for the registration, inspection and regulation of such institutions, applies in England only. Section 93 explains that the framework for the registration and regulation of independent schools in Wales continues to be set out in Chapter 1 of Part 10 of the Education Act 2002, which is amended by paragraphs 15 to 24 of Schedule 1 and Schedule 2 of this Act.
114.Section 92 does not change the definition of an independent school set out in existing legislation. However, it introduces a new definition, that of an independent educational institution, which includes independent schools and other independent educational institutions that provide part-time education. The section also sets out the amount of part-time provision an institution must offer in order to fall within the scope of this new wider definition. The amount of part-time provision is defined by reference to the number of hours per week and the number of weeks per year offered to students of a particular age group. Regulations may amend the number of weeks per year which amounts to provision that falls within the definition and may specify that certain activities do not count as educational provision for the purposes of the definition. Further, regulations may specify that an institution that would otherwise qualify as an independent educational institution because of its provision of part-time education is not to be regarded as an independent educational institution for the purposes of this Chapter.
115.The new definition of independent educational institution covers settings which are the main provider of a child’s education and which otherwise would not be subject to any statutory framework.