The Education Reform(Northern Ireland) Order 1989

Ballot of parents

70.—(1) Where the Board of Governors of any school is under a duty by virtue of Article 69 to secure that a ballot is held in accordance with this Article, it shall secure that all necessary arrangements for the ballot are made by such body as may be prescribed (“the prescribed body”).

(2) The arrangements shall provide for a secret postal ballot.

(3) It shall be the duty of the Board of Governors to secure that the prescribed body takes such steps as are reasonably practicable to secure that every person who is eligible to vote in the ballot is—

(a) given such information about the procedure for and consequences of acquisition of grant-maintained integrated status for a school as may reasonably be expected to enable him to form a proper judgment as to whether or not such status should be sought for the school, including, in particular, the information mentioned in paragraph (4);

(b) informed that he is entitled to vote in the ballot; and

(c) given an opportunity to do so.

(4) The information referred to in paragraph (3)(a) is—

(a) a general explanation of the provisions of this Part relating to—

(i) the procedure for acquisition of grant-maintained integrated status for a school;

(ii) the constitution and powers of the Board of Governors of such a school; and

(iii) the conduct and funding of such a school;

(b) the date that will be included in any proposal for acquisition of grant-maintained integrated status submitted in respect of the school under Article 71(1) if the result of the ballot is in favour of seeking grant-maintained integrated status as the proposed date of implementation of the proposal;

(c) such other information as the Department may direct.

(5) Where the Board of Governors of any school is under a duty by virtue of Article 69 to secure that a ballot is held in accordance with this Article, it shall make available to every person employed to work at the school for inspection (at all reasonable times and free of charge) at the school a document containing the information required by paragraphs (3)(a) and (4) to be given to persons eligible to vote in the ballot.

(6) In determining the arrangements it requires to be made by the prescribed body for the purposes of the ballot the Board of Governors shall take into account any guidance given by the Department as to the arrangements it considers appropriate for ballots held in accordance with this Article.

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

(8) Where in the case of any ballot held in respect of a school in accordance with this Article other than one held by virtue of this paragraph (“the first ballot”) the total number of votes cast in the ballot (disregarding spoiled votes) by persons eligible to vote in the ballot is less than fifty per cent. of the number of persons so eligible, it shall be the duty of the Board of Governors to secure that another ballot (“the second ballot”) is held before the end of the period of fourteen days beginning with the day on which the total number of votes cast in the first ballot is determined.

(9) In any case to which paragraph (8) applies—

(a) the first ballot shall be disregarded for the purposes of Article 71(1); and

(b) subject to paragraph (10), the provisions of this Article shall apply as they apply in a case where the Board of Governors of a school is under a duty by virtue of Article 69 to secure that a ballot is held in accordance with this Article.

(10) In any such case—

(a) those provisions shall apply with the omission of paragraphs (3)(a) and (4); and

(b) paragraph (5) shall be read as if the information there referred to were the information given for the purposes of the first ballot.

(11) If it appears to the Department—

(a) that any requirements of this Article have been contravened in the case of any ballot held in purported compliance with this Article;

(b) that the arrangements for any ballot so held did not accord with any guidance given by it for the purposes of this Article; or

(c) that the Board of Governors of any school has acted unreasonably in the discharge of its duties under this Article,

it may by notice in writing given to the Board of Governors declare the ballot void and require that a fresh ballot be held in accordance with this Article before such date as it may specify in the notice.

(12) Where a ballot is held in respect of a school in accordance with this Article, the Department may pay, or reimburse the Board of Governors of the school in respect of, the whole or any part of the expenses incurred by the Board of Governors in respect of the ballot.

(13) The making of any payments under paragraph (12) shall be subject to such conditions as the Department thinks fit.

(14) For the purposes of this Article, a person is eligible to vote in any ballot held in respect of a school in accordance with this Article if he is—

(a) known to the Board of Governors to be a parent of a registered pupil at the school; and

(b) named as a parent of such a pupil in the register kept in accordance with Article 48 of the principal Order in the case of the school, as that register has effect on the date immediately following the end of the period of fourteen days beginning with the date on which the relevant resolution or request was passed or received by the Board of Governors.

(15) For the purposes of sub-paragraph (a) of paragraph (14) it shall be for the Board of Governors to determine any question whether a person is a parent of a registered pupil at the school; and in sub-paragraph (b) of that paragraph the reference to the relevant resolution or request is a reference to the resolution or request (mentioned in Article 69(4)) by reference to which the ballot is required to be held or, where the ballot is a second ballot under paragraph (8), by reference to which the first ballot was required to be held.