Education Reform Act 1988

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Education Reform Act 1988
Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom (Variant 1, 2022).svg
Long title An Act to amend the law relating to education.
Citation 1988 c. 40
Territorial extent Whole act England and Wales; ss. 131, 134, 202-205, 207, 214-216, 231, 232, 235-236 and 238 and Sch. 8 and 11 Scotland; ss. 208 and 217(1) Northern Ireland; amendments of legislation which extends to Northern Ireland and Scotland also extend there
Dates
Royal assent 29 July 1988
Commencement Various dates from 29 July 1988 to 1 August 1992
Other legislation
Amended by Further and Higher Education Act 1992, Education Act 1996
Status: Amended
Text of statute as originally enacted
Text of the Education Reform Act 1988 as in force today (including any amendments) within the United Kingdom, from legislation.gov.uk.

The Education Reform Act 1988 is widely regarded[ according to whom? ] as the most important single piece of education legislation in England and Wales since the 'Butler' Education Act 1944.[ citation needed ]

Contents

Provisions

The main provisions of the Education Reform Act are as follows:

Commencement

Date of commencementProvisionsAuthority for commencement
29 July 1988ss. 1; 2(1)(b) and (2); 3 and 4; 14 and 15 and Sch. 2; 20 to 22 and 23(1); 25; 33 to 45 and Schedule 3; 46 to 104 and Sch. 4 and 5; 105; 112 and 113; 116; 119; 137 to 151; 153 to 201 and Sch. 8 as far as relating to the Education Assets Board, Sch. 9 and 10 and para. 67 of Sch. 12; 202 to 208 and Sch 11; 212 and 213; 217; 219 so far as relating to grant-maintained schools; 221 to 225 and 227(1); 230 to 235 and Sch. 6; 236; Part I of Sch. 12, paras. 60, 81, 82 and 102 of that Sch. and s. 237(1) so far as relating to those provisions and s. 238s. 236(1)
29 September 1988ss. 2(1)(a) and (3); 6, 8, 9, 10(1), 11 and 13 and Sch. 1s. 236(3)
1 April 1990Part II of Sch. 12; Part I of Sch. 13 and s. 237(1) so far as relating to those provisionsss. 236(4) and (5)

Use of the word 'degree'

The Act uses a common technique in UK legislation in that it makes it illegal to offer or advertise any qualification that appears to be, or might be mistaken for, a UK degree.

This restriction is then removed in respect of qualifications from bodies on a list maintained by statutory instrument.

Religion

The act required "broadly Christian" acts of worship in schools. The National Muslim Education Council objected and requested that the wording to be changed to "the worship of the one supreme God". [2]

This requirement was built upon in the School Standards and Framework Act 1998.

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Section 70 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998 stipulates that pupils of community, foundation or voluntary schools in England and Wales must take part in a daily act of Collective Worship, unless they have been explicitly withdrawn by their parents. The same requirement is applied to academy schools via their funding agreements, so it is true to say that all maintained schools in England and Wales are subject to the same rules. However, in practice there is widespread non-compliance with the legislation, which has not been monitored by Ofsted since 2004.

References

  1. Times Higher Education , 5 December 1997, Memories of jobs for life
  2. New community, Volume 18, Centre for Research in Ethnic Relations, University of Warwick, 1991, p.465.