Education Act 1996

Single-sex schools

552 Transitional exemption orders for purposes of Sex Discrimination Act 1975

(1) Where—

(a) by reason of section 37(7)(b), 43(4)(b), 169(6)(b) or 199(2) any proposals for a school to cease to be an establishment which admits pupils of one sex only may not be determined until the Secretary of State has made his determination with respect to any proposals for acquisition of grant-maintained status, and

(b) the proposals for acquisition of grant-maintained status and the proposals for the school to cease to be such an establishment are approved (with or without modification),

paragraph 1 of Schedule 2 to the 1975 Act shall not apply but the new governing body shall be treated as having applied for the making by the Secretary of State of a transitional exemption order, and he may make such an order accordingly.

(2) Where the governing body of a grant-maintained school publish under section 259 proposals for the school to cease to be an establishment which admits pupils of one sex only and (by virtue of section 264(1)) Part III of this Act has effect with the modifications in section 264(2) to (7) in relation to the proposals, then—

(a) paragraph 1 of Schedule 2 to the 1975 Act shall not apply unless the proposals require the approval of the Secretary of State, and

(b) in any other case, the governing body shall be treated as having applied for the making by the funding authority of a transitional exemption order, and the funding authority may make such an order accordingly.

(3) Where under section 260 the funding authority submit to the Secretary of State a copy of proposals for a school to cease to be an establishment which admits pupils of one sex only, then—

(a) if the proposals require the approval of the Secretary of State, the governing body shall be treated as having applied for the making by him of a transitional exemption order, and

(b) in any other case, the governing body shall be treated as having applied for the making by the funding authority of such an order,

and the Secretary of State or, as the case may be, the funding authority may make such an order accordingly.

(4) Where in pursuance of section 339(1)(b) a local education authority serve notice of proposals for a maintained special school to cease to be an establishment which admits pupils of one sex only, the responsible body shall be treated as having applied for the making by the Secretary of State of a transitional exemption order, and the Secretary of State may make such an order accordingly.

(5) Where proposals made by the Secretary of State under section 502—

(a) are for a school to cease to be an establishment which admits pupils of one sex only, and

(b) have effect as mentioned in section 504(3),

the responsible body shall be treated as having applied for the making by the Secretary of State of a transitional exemption order, and the Secretary of State may make such an order accordingly.

(6) In this section—

• “the 1975 Act” means the [1975 c. 65.] Sex Discrimination Act 1975,

• “responsible body” has the same meaning as in section 22 of the 1975 Act, and

• “transitional exemption order” has the same meaning as in section 27 of the 1975 Act,

and references to proposals for a school to cease to be an establishment which admits pupils of one sex only are references to proposals which are or include proposals for such an alteration in a school’s admissions arrangements as is mentioned in section 27(1) of the 1975 Act (single-sex establishments becoming co-educational).