The Education Reform(Northern Ireland) Order 1989

Preparation and imposition of schemes

47.—(1) A scheme prepared by a board under Article 46 shall be submitted to the Department on or before such date as the Department may direct.

(2) In preparing a scheme under that Article a board shall take into account any guidance given by the Department as to the provisions it regards as appropriate for inclusion in the scheme.

(3) The Department shall publish any guidance given by it for the purposes of this Article in such manner as it thinks fit.

(4) Before preparing such a scheme a board shall consult the Board of Governors of every relevant school and the Council for Catholic Maintained Schools.

(5) The Department may request a board to furnish such information in connection with any scheme submitted to the Department as the Department may require, including information as to the results of consultations under paragraph (4).

(6) Such a scheme shall not come into operation until it has been approved by the Department or until such date as the Department may, in giving its approval, specify; and the Department may approve such a scheme—

(a) either without modifications or with such modifications as it thinks fit after consulting the board concerned; and

(b) subject to such conditions as it may specify in giving its approval.

(7) A scheme shall be published in such manner as may be directed by the Department—

(a) on its coming into operation; and

(b) on such subsequent occasions as may be so directed.

(8) If in the case of any board either—

(a) the board fails to submit a scheme as required by paragraph (1); or

(b) it appears to the Department that a scheme submitted by the board as required by that paragraph does not accord with any guidance given by it for the purposes of this Article and cannot be made to do so merely by modifying it,

the Department may, after consulting the board and such other persons as it thinks fit, impose a scheme making such provision of a description required to be made by a scheme under Article 46 in relation to the financing by the board of relevant schools as it considers appropriate.

(9) A scheme imposed by the Department by virtue of paragraph (8)—

(a) shall be treated as if made under Article 46 by the board concerned; and

(b) shall come into operation on such date as may be specified in the scheme.