Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)

The various amendments to the Education Act 1998 that are contained in the Bill were presented to the partners and discussed with them. All of the latter indicated some pleasure in respect of these amendments.

The Bill arises out of the report of the task force on student behaviour in second level schools, which was published less than 12 months ago. Since then, the behaviour support task force has been established. This body invited every school in the country to meet its representatives and it has taken submissions from schools. It is now actively working with schools in all sectors and with varying gender mixes throughout the country. Progress is being made on a number of the recommendations — of which this Bill is one — contained in the report of the task force on student behaviour.

The Bill contains an amendment to section 29 of the Education Act 1998, in which provision is made for the establishment of an appeals committee. That is what we have been discussing since Second Stage. This Bill outlines the factors that the appeals committee should take into consideration when an appeal against an expulsion is being considered. It was felt that the balance was wrong and leaned too much in favour of the rights of the individual rather than those of other children, as well as their health, safety and welfare and that of school staff. In seeking to redress the balance, we set about laying down the criteria that would have to be considered by an appeals committee when considering an appeal before it. As Deputy O'Sullivan correctly stated, the rights of an individual student cannot be ignored when an appeal is being considered. It must be remembered that students do, after all, have constitutional rights. The Bill is aimed at trying to strike the appropriate balance between the educational rights of individual students and those of entire school communities. It is also designed to try to promote a positive learning environment.

Under the new section 29 being inserted into the 1998 Act, an appeals committee must give consideration to "the reasonableness of any efforts made by the school to enable the student to whom the appeal relates ... to participate in and benefit from education". Students remain very much to the fore. The new section 29 also states that the committee must have regard to "the educational interests of the student concerned and the desirability of enabling the student as far as practicable to participate in and benefit from education with his or her peers". We are, quite rightly, stating that individual students cannot be ignored. I am glad that some element of balance is being restored to the debate in respect of the such students.

Deputy O'Sullivan asked me to clarify the position regarding when a child is about to be expelled from a school. This relates to the point Deputy Gogarty made in respect of the National Educational Welfare Board coming on stream. The Education (Welfare) Act specifically states:

Where the board of management of a recognised school or a person acting on its behalf is of the opinion that a student should be expelled from that school it shall, before so expelling the student, notify the educational welfare officer to whom functions under this Act have been assigned . . .

As soon, therefore, as an opinion is formed that a child must be expelled, the National Educational Welfare Board must be notified. The Act also states that "A student shall not be expelled from a school before the passing of 20 school days following the receipt of a notification". Therefore, the National Educational Welfare Board has 20 school days between the notification of expulsion and that expulsion taking place to fine an alternative placement for the child involved.

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