COMMENTARY ON SECTIONS Sections 4-18 insert new provisions into the Education Act 2002 Section 7 Pupils’ choices of local curriculum courses (section 116D of the Education Act 2002)
28.This section begins the process which results in a pupil being entitled to follow courses of study included in the local curriculum applicable to his or her school. Under this section, pupils have the right to make an election to follow a particular course of study. Later provisions determine whether that choice is to be converted into an entitlement to follow the course of study in question.
29.Subsection (1) sets out the rights of pupils to elect to follow, during Key Stage 4, a course or courses from the applicable local curriculum. These rights, however, are subject to regulations made by the Welsh Ministers under subsection (2).
30.Subsection (2) enables regulations to be made which could, for example, specify the maximum number of courses the pupil may choose to elect to follow from the whole local curriculum, identify the number of ‘points’ that attach to particular courses (and set a maximum number of aggregate ‘points’ which must not be exceeded by a pupil’s selection of courses) and the period during which those choices should be made. It may be necessary to restrict the period during which choices may be made in order that, subsequently, the agencies involved have sufficient time to make the necessary preparations for delivering the chosen courses of study (which could be delivered by a school or institution other than the one attended when choices are made).