Ms Lorraine Dempsey:

I thank the committee for the invitation to present at this meeting. The issues arising from both Bills are our bread and butter. Every day we receive complaints from parents about schools after they have gone through local complaints processes, contacted the Department of Education and Skills and the Ombudsman for Children's office, which redirects them to local resolutions, and the boards of management will not budge on decisions. If parents are at the start of that process, we usually talk them through it so as to ensure that they do not go down the wrong avenue before contacting the Ombudsman for Children's office. After they have done that and still do not have a resolution, though, they are often in a dire psychological state. I have personal experience of that, believe it or not. I have been there with a board of management. I have also sat on a board of management, so I am well aware of how boards operate and the challenges of having that responsibility.

These complaints are the bread and butter of the Ombudsman for Children's office, with 45% of them relating to education. We have concerns about the capacity of the office to conduct investigations in a timely fashion. Its own reports indicate that although there may be a resolution in a case, the child has either aged out of the school or the parent has voluntarily, albeit under pressure, removed the child to a new school placement. That is not necessarily in the best interests of the child or parent in terms of the former's educational pathway. Were the Ombudsman for Children's remit to be extended, we would like it to have greater capacity so that the investigation process could be undertaken in a timely fashion. In the interim, we advocate for a formal, free advocacy or mediation service, be that under the auspices of the Ombudsman's office or an external service, whereby schools and parents can find local resolutions. Some schools have funded mediation, particularly where there have been heated disputes, but doing so is up to each school. The parent is often not in a position to afford a mediator and the school may be reluctant to allow in an external person.

Deputy Daly introduced the Education (Amendment) Bill 2015. I have been giving out about the problem with boards of management for a considerable length of time, so I commend the Deputy on introducing the Bill and recognise that, as an ex-principal, it was difficult for him to do. We find that many boards side with their principals' opinions and defer to their day-to-day managers regardless of whether they have different opinions on a case. As long as the theme and intentions of the Education (Amendment) Bill are fulfilled within the parent and student charter, we would welcome whichever Bill proceeds if there is a solution that is external to the boards of management - another pathway for a parent to take where the interests of the child are paramount - and the Minister has the power to make the board's decisions accountable.

In the decision-making process, the balance of power in schools has shifted towards the boards of management. This can have an impact. For example, if the relationship between the parent and the principal breaks down, the latter has the power to sway board decisions. The principal can also withhold information from the board - I have seen this at first hand - and, therefore, a board's decision is often not based on the reality of the situation or the complaint. Parents try to subvert this process by contacting the parents' representatives on boards so as to ensure that the latter have whatever correspondence or complaints have been delivered to the board's chair. As such, I would welcome better accountability in the decision-making processes of boards and oversight of how they reached a decision.

In general, we recommend the proposals in the parent and student charter, which would provide for parents and students to be treated more equally and with greater esteem. The self-esteem of a parent who is fighting for a child's rights can be battered by the power that boards of management hold within the system, especially when there is no "out" if the decision is contrary to what the parent would like to see.

We have submitted observations on the heads of the Bill. Some aspects have left us questioning the decision-making processes between the Ombudsman for Children and the Minister for Education and Skills. For example, if the Ombudsman advises schools on a pathway to a resolution but they disregard it, at what point does the Ombudsman approach the Minister, would that be timely and what would be the timeline for the Minister to respond to the difficulties at the schools?

The Bill appears to give boards the right to reply to the Minister's office. We would ask that the parents concerned and student body also be given that right. Otherwise, an unbalanced power will be given to the boards.

Head No. 4 is unclear as to who would inform the Minister of a school charter's non-compliance with the Bill's proposed guidelines. Would that be picked up through a complaint or the inspectorate?

One of the Bills seeks to establish a separate office of an ombudsman for education that would have a restrictive remit, given that education spans a broad area beyond just schools. On the other hand, there is a proposal to extend the powers of the Ombudsman for Children. As long as the outcomes are positive for parents and their children, we do not mind which pathway is chosen. I assume that the decision will come down to the financial considerations.

It is proposed that student councils would give more regard to the interests of the students within a school than the school itself. We want that same powerful principle to apply to any decision-making by boards of management. Protectionism and risk aversion have strangled decision making in boards of management. The outcomes are not always in the best interest of the child but influenced by insurance and indemnities, fear and ignorance, misinformation and lack of internal transparency, and fear of legal action by parties concerned. It may be timely for the Department of Education and Skills, managerial bodies and education stakeholders to review the composition, functions and processes of boards of management in line with the processes under pre-legislative scrutiny of the Bills.