2020 No. 848 (W. 187)

Education, Wales

The Education (School Day and School Year) (Wales) (Amendment) (Coronavirus) Regulations 2020

Made

Laid before Senedd Cymru

Coming into force

The Welsh Ministers, in exercise of the powers conferred on the Secretary of State by sections 551 and 569(4) and (5) of the Education Act 19961, and now vested in them2 make the following Regulations.

Title and commencementI11

The title of these Regulations is the Education (School Day and School Year) (Wales) (Amendment) (Coronavirus) Regulations 2020 and they come into force on 1 September 2020.

Annotations:
Commencement Information
I1

Reg. 1 in force at 1.9.2020, see reg. 1

Amendment of the Education (School Day and School Year) (Wales) Regulations 2003

I22

The Education (School Day and School Year) (Wales) Regulations 20033 are amended as follows.

Annotations:
Commencement Information
I2

Reg. 2 in force at 1.9.2020, see reg. 1

I33

In regulation 4(2), at the beginning insert “Subject to paragraph (2A),”.

Annotations:
Commencement Information
I3

Reg. 3 in force at 1.9.2020, see reg. 1

I44

After regulation 4(2) insert—

2A

At least 370 sessions must be held at a school listed in paragraph (2B) during the school year 2020-2021 save that nothing in this paragraph is to require a nursery class at those schools to meet for that number of sessions.

2B

All maintained schools in the following local authority areas—

i

Conwy;

ii

Pembrokeshire except for Ysgol y Preseli, Crymych, Pembrokeshire, SA41 3QH;

iii

Powys.

Annotations:
Commencement Information
I4

Reg. 4 in force at 1.9.2020, see reg. 1

I55

After regulation 5 insert—

6

1

This paragraph applies to any school session falling within the school year 2020-2021 which is devoted (wholly or mainly) to the preparation of schools and planning by teachers following the reduction in operations due to circumstances relating to the incidence or transmission of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2).

2

Paragraph (1) is to have effect in relation to no more than four school sessions in the first two weeks of the first term of that school year.

3

Where paragraph (1) applies, that session is to be regarded for the purposes of regulation 4 as a session on which the school has met.

Annotations:
Commencement Information
I5

Reg. 5 in force at 1.9.2020, see reg. 1

Kirsty WilliamsMinister for Education, one of the Welsh Ministers
EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

The Education (School Day and School Year) (Wales) Regulations 2003 (“the 2003 Regulations”) apply to schools maintained by local authorities and to special schools whether or not so maintained. They make provision, among other things, for a school day which is ordinarily to be divided into two sessions with a break in the middle, and for schools (other than nursery schools) to meet for at least 380 sessions during any school year.

These Regulations amend the 2003 Regulations in two ways:

1

To allow schools which opened for an additional week at the end of the summer term of the 2019-2020 school year to hold at least 370 sessions during the 2020-2021 school year instead of at least 380 sessions.

2

To allow for up to four sessions to count as sessions on which the school met if they were devoted to the preparation of schools and planning by teachers following a reduction in operations as a result of the incidence and transmission of Coronavirus during the 2019-2020 school year. These sessions will be held during the first two weeks of the first term of the 2020-2021 school year.

The Welsh Ministers’ Code of Practice on the carrying out of Regulatory Impact Assessments was considered in relation to these Regulations. As a result, a regulatory impact assessment has been prepared as to the likely costs and benefits of complying with these Regulations. A copy can be obtained from the School Governance, School Organisation and Admissions Branch, the Schools Effectiveness Division, Welsh Government, Cathays Park, Cardiff, CF10 3NQ.