P-05-969 Investigate the Draft Education Database Regulations 2020 - unnecessary and a breach of human rights

P-05-969 Investigate the Draft Education Database Regulations 2020 - unnecessary and a breach of human rights

This petition was submitted by Mountain Movers Registered Charity having collected a total of 236 signatures.

Text of Petition                      

We call on the National Assembly for Wales to investigate:

1) What evidence the Welsh Government has used in the creation of the Integrated Impact Assessment for the Draft Regulations Consultation (WG 39220) that:

a) suggest the current Child Missing Education Regulation is failing to identify significant numbers of children

b) How a database & the previous draft guidance (2019) will meet the targets of the Integrated Impact Assessment?

2) What evidence indicates that EHE children are at increased risk of being NEET or not reaching their full potential?

3) Clarification. Is there a longer-term goal to bring about monitoring/regulation of educational content/curriculum with regular testing for EHE in order to meet the aims stated in the guidance & Integrated Impact Assessment.

4) Investigate the lack of safeguards proposed in the Draft Regulations to prevent them from being used as a tracking tool of families?

5) Investigate the level of consultation with Health Boards on the impact these Draft Regulations will have on them & why there is no costing or impact assessment for the Health Service provided with this consultation?

a) How would any cost & burden on the NHS be justified?

6) Investigate the level of consultation with other minority groups (GRT Communities, Refugee & Asylum seeker & families of children attending Independent Schools) to ensure their views have also been ascertained?

7) Investigate are costs suggested in the Draft realistic & do they constitute an effective & efficient use of taxpayers monies in light that there are already sufficient regulations in place to enable LAs to identify children who are missing education with mechanisms to enable LAs to seek Education Supervision or School Attendance Orders where a child is identified as missing education?

Would it be more effective & efficient to instead increase funding & support for social services?

Additional Information

EHE = elective home educating NEET = Not in Education or Training Specific Impact Assessment Targets: “help to ensure children develop and reach their full potential, and reduce the chances of becoming NEET”

“support the goal of a more equal Wales, a society that enables children and young people to realise their rights and to fulfil their potential no matter what their background and circumstances”

“These proposals are driven by the need to support a child’s right to education and to ensure that they, and their parents, are empowered and comfortable in accessing universal and targeted services that are aimed at supporting their well-being”

“ensure all children receive their entitlement to education as per Section 7 of the Education ACT 1996 and are allowed to develop and fulfill their ambitions.

Status

This petition was considered completed by the Petitions Committee at its meeting on 07/07/2020.

In light of the Minister for Education’s announcement that the planned reforms will no longer be taken forward during the remainder of this Senedd term, the Committee agreed to note the petition and the concerns that have been raised but close the petition at this point in time and thank the petitioners for bringing this forward.

Full details of the consideration of this petitions by the committee and related documents can be seen on the Meetings tab above.

It was first considered by the Petitions Committee on 07/07/2020.

Senedd Constituency and Region

• Neath
• South Wales West

Further information

• The Petitions Committee homepage
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