The Education Workforce Council (Additional Categories of Registration) (Wales) Order 2023

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Order)

The Education (Wales) Act 2014 (“the 2014 Act”) makes provision in relation to the Education Workforce Council (“the Council”). Part 2 of the 2014 Act confers functions on the Council in relation to persons who are required to register in the register the Council maintains in accordance with section 9 of that Act (“the Register”).

The categories of registered persons are set out in Table 1 in paragraph 1 in Schedule 2 to the 2014 Act. The Welsh Ministers have the power in paragraph 2 of that Schedule to add, amend or remove a category of registration. Accordingly, Part 6 of this Order amends Table 1 in paragraph 1 in Schedule 2 to the 2014 Act to add the following categories of registered person—

(a) independent school teacher,

(b) independent school learning support worker,

(c) independent special post-16 institution teacher, and

(d) independent special post-16 institution learning support worker.

Part 2 of this Order specifies independent school teacher services. These services may only be provided in or for independent schools by persons who are registered with the Council in the category of independent school teacher. This Part also provides that only persons registered in the category of independent school learning support worker may support the provision of independent school teacher services in or for an independent school. However, the requirements to register set out in this Part do not apply to persons who provide the services or support the provision of services as volunteers.

Part 3 of this Order specifies independent special post-16 institution teacher services. These services may only be provided in or for an independent special post-16 institution by persons who are registered with the Council in the category of independent special post-16 institution teacher. This Part also provides that only persons registered in the category of independent special post-16 institution learning support worker may support the provision of independent special post-16 institution teacher services in or for an independent special post-16 institution. However, the requirements to register set out in this Part do not apply to persons who provide the services or support the provision of services as volunteers.

Part 4 of this Order makes amendments to the Education Workforce Council (Registration of Youth Workers, Youth Support Workers and Work Based Learning Practitioners) Order 2016 (“the 2016 Order”). References in the 2016 Order to “relevant body” are replaced with references to “relevant employer”. A relevant employer means a person who employs or otherwise engages persons to provide youth development services in Wales.

This Part also provides that a person is eligible for provisional registration as a youth worker if they are working towards obtaining a youth worker qualification. Also, a person is eligible for provisional registration as a youth support worker if they are working towards obtaining a youth support worker qualification. A person who is eligible for provisional registration must be provisionally registered in order to provide youth development services for or on behalf of a relevant employer (unless they are providing the services as a volunteer).

This Part also imposes duties on the Council to prepare and maintain a list of youth worker qualifications and youth support worker qualifications. The Council must inform the Welsh Ministers, on an annual basis, of any amendments that should be made to the list of youth worker and list of youth support worker qualifications as set out in Schedules 1 and 2 to the 2016 Order.

Part 5 makes amendments to the Education Workforce Council (Main Functions) (Wales) Regulations 2015 (“the 2015 Regulations”) in relation to school teachers and learning support workers. The definition of “specified work” in regulation 17 of the 2015 Regulations is amended to make sure all teachers who are head teachers or have another senior leadership role are captured in the category of school teacher. The amendments also simplify the requirements in relation to school learning support workers and make clear that a school teacher does not also have to register in the category of learning support worker unless that person is employed or otherwise engaged as a school learning support worker in a school in Wales. The amendments amend the requirements in relation to further education learning support workers to make clear that a further education teacher does not also have to register in the category of further education learning support worker unless that person is employed or otherwise engaged as a further education learning support worker in a further education institution in Wales.

Part 7 of this Order amends the Education Workforce Council (Registration Fees) Regulations 2017 (“the 2017 Regulations”) to make provision in relation to the amount of registration fee payable by the new categories of registration. The fees payable for all categories of registration are set out in regulation 4 of the 2017 Regulations. Regulation 4 also provides that the Welsh Ministers may determine the amount by which those registration fees will be subsidised and requires them to publish the amount of that subsidy on the Welsh Government website.

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 Welsh Government at Cathays Park, Cardiff CF10 3NQ and on the Welsh Government website at www.gov.wales.