Education (Scotland) Act 1980

1 Duty of education authorities to secure provision of education. S

(1) Subject to [F1 subsections [F2 (1A)] and (2A)] below, it shall be the duty of every education authority to secure that there is made for their area adequate and efficient provision of school education and further education.

[F3 (1A) The duty imposed on education authorities by subsection (1) above shall, in relation to children who are under school age, be exercisable only as respects children of such description or descriptions as may be prescribed by order.

(1B) Where an order is made under subsection (1A) above, the amount of school education with which children of a description prescribed in that order are to be provided shall also be prescribed in the order.

(1C) An education authority shall have power in relation to pre-school children to secure for their area the provision of such school education, other than that which they are required by subsection (1) above to secure, as they think fit.]

F4 (2) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

[F5 (2A) The duty imposed on an education authority by subsection (1) above shall not include the provision of further education within the meaning of Part I of the Further and Higher Education (Scotland) Act 1992, but an education authority shall have power to provide such further education for their area.]

(3) Every education authority [F6 shall for the purposes of their duty under subsection (1) above—

(a)] have power to secure for their area, and

(b) F7 . . . be under a duty to secure for pupils in attendance at schools in their area,

the provision of adequate facilities for social, cultural and recreative activities and for physical education and training.

(4) The facilities for further education that may be provided by an education authority shall include facilities for vocational and industrial training.

[F8 (4A) The power to make an order under this section shall be exercisable by statutory instrument subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of the Scottish Parliament.

(4B) In this section “pre-school children” means—

(a) children who are under school age and have not commenced attendance at a primary school (other than a nursery class in such a school); and

(b) children who have attained school age but have not commenced attendance at such a school.]

(5) In this Act—

(a) “school education” means progressive education appropriate to the requirements of pupils F9 . . ., regard being had to the age, ability and aptitude of such pupils, and includes—

(i) activities in schools and classes ([F10 such schools and classes being] in this Act called “nursery schools” and “nursery classes”), being activities of a kind suitable in the ordinary case for pupils who are under school age;

[F11 (ii) provision for special educational needs;]

(iii) the teaching of Gaelic in Gaelic-speaking areas;

(b) further education includes—

(i) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . F12

(ii) voluntary part-time and full-time courses of instruction for persons over school age;

(iii) social, cultural and recreative activities and physical education and training, either as [F13 voluntary organised activities designed to promote the educational development of persons taking part therein or as] part of a course of instruction F7 . . .;

(iv) the teaching of Gaelic in Gaelic-speaking areas;

[F14 (c) “provision for special educational needs”, in relation to a child [F15 who has attained school age] or to a young person receiving school education, means educational provision which is additional to, or otherwise different from, the educational provision made generally for children or, as the case may be, young persons of his age in schools under the management of the education authority for the area to which he belongs in accordance with section 23(3) of this Act [F16 and in relation to any other child means such educational provision as is appropriate to those needs];

(d) “special educational needs”, in relation to a child or young person, are needs caused by a learning difficulty which he has which calls for provision for special educational needs to be made for him, and a child or young person has a learning difficulty for the purposes of this paragraph if—

(i) he has significantly greater difficulty in learning than the majority of children or, as the case may be, young persons of his age; or

(ii) he suffers from a disability which either prevents or hinders him from making use of educational facilities of a kind generally provided for children or, as the case may be, young persons of his age in schools under the management of the education authority for the area to which he belongs in accordance with section 23(3) of this Act; or

(iii) he is under the age of five years and is, or would be if provision for special educational needs were not made for him, likely to fall within sub-paragraph (i) or (ii) above when over that age,

but a child or young person is not to be taken as having a learning difficulty solely because the language in which he is or will be taught (the “teaching language”) is different from a language, or from a form of the teaching language, which has at any time been spoken in his home.]

Textual Amendments

F1 Words in s. 1(1) substituted (1.4.1993) by Further and Higher Education Act (Scotland) Act 1992 (c. 37), s. 2(a) (with s. 30(2)); S.I. 1992/817, art. 3(2), Sch. 4

F2 Word in s. 1(1) substituted (4.3.2002) by 2000 asp 6, s. 32(2); S.S.I. 2002/72, art. 2(1)(a)

F3 S. 1(1A)-(1C) inserted (4.3.2002) by 2000 asp 6, s. 32(3); S.S.I. 2002/72, art. 2(1)(a)

F4 S. 1(2) repealed (4.3.2002) by 2000 asp 6, s. 32(4); S.S.I. 2002/72, art. 2(1)(a)

F5 S. 1(2A) inserted (1.4.1993) by Further and Higher Education Act (Scotland) Act 1992 (c. 37), s. 2(b) (with s. 30(2)); S.I. 1992/817, art. 3(2), Sch. 4

F6 Words in s. 1(3) substituted (1.4.1983) by Local Government and Planning (Scotland) Act 1982 (c. 43), s. 69(2), Sch. 3 para. 37(a)(i) and S.I. 1982/1397, Sch. 2

F7 Words repealed (1.4.1983) by Local Government and Planning (Scotland) Act 1982 (c. 43), s. 69(2), Sch. 4 Pt. I and S.I. 1982/1397, Sch. 2

F8 S. 1(4A)(4B) inserted (4.3.2002) by 2000 asp 6, s. 32(5); S.S.I. 2002/72, art. 2(1)(a)

F9 Words in s. 1(5)(a) repealed (13.10.2000) by 2000 asp 6, s. 60(2), Sch. 3; S.S.I. 2000/361, art. 3(1)(2), Sch. Pt. I

F10 Words in s. 1(5)(a)(i) substituted (13.10.2000) by 2000 asp 6, s. 60(1), Sch. 2 para. 3(2); S.S.I. 2000/361, art. 3(1)(2), Sch. Pt. I

F11 S. 1(5)(a)(ii) substituted by Education (Scotland) Act 1981 (c. 58), s. 3(1)(a), Sch. 8

F12 S. 1(5)(b)(i) repealed by Self-Governing Schools etc. (Scotland) Act 1989 (c. 39, SIF 41:2), s. 82(2), Sch. 11

F13 Words inserted (1.4.1983) by Local Government and Planning (Scotland) Act 1982 (c. 43), s. 69(2), Sch. 3 para. 37(b)(i) and S.I. 1982/1397, Sch.2

F14 S. 1(5)(c)(d) substituted for s. 1(5)(c) by Education (Scotland) Act 1981 (c. 58), s. 3(1)(b), Sch. 8

F15 Words inserted by Self-Governing Schools etc. (Scotland) Act 1989 (c. 39, SIF 41:2), s. 82(1), Sch. 10 para. 8(2)(a)

F16 Words inserted by Self-Governing Schools etc. (Scotland) Act 1989 (c. 39, SIF 41:2), s. 82(1), Sch. 10 para. 8(2)(b)

Modifications etc. (not altering text)

C1 S. 1 amended (4.3.2002) by 2000 asp 6, s. 33(1)-(3); S.S.I. 2002/72, art. 2(1)(b)