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ESC’s attempt to bring about a review to Guernsey’s archaic Education Law will face multiple amendments today.
Guernsey’s decades old Education Law could be updated if a proposal to review it and implement multiple changes is passed by the States during today’s debate. However, a number of deputies have submitted amendments to the Committee for Education, Sport & Culture's Policy Letter.
Express breaks them down below:
Deputies Victoria Oliver and Yvonne Burford are seeking to strengthen support for parents and carers who choose to educate their children at home.
Amendments one through three promote the importance of home education, an example being amendment two, which would cut out the intent to means test parents/carers on the Home Education Roll for the cost of exams.
“The policy letter proposes to means-test parents/carers of home educated learners in this regard,” the amendment states.
“This amendment would remove that proposed inequity by treating home-educating families in a similar manner to families with learners on the school roll where the cost of qualifications or examinations is concerned.”
The Sexual Health and Relationship Education (SHARE) team provide age-appropriate sexual health and relationship education and have been doing so since 1997.
Deputies Gavin St Pier and Tina Bury have submitted an amendment to ensure that the Education Law Review includes SHARE within it, as the original document had no reference to the team.
It’s understood that ESC will be supporting the amendment.
Deputy Heidi Soulsby was up for a simple re-election to the Ladies College Board of Governors, and while she was elected, it wasn’t unanimous, despite Deputy Soulsby being the only candidate.
The surprisingly contentious vote in the States Assembly led to further speculation about ‘toxic personality politics’.
It’s no surprise then that Deputy Soulsby (seconded by Deputy Jonathan Le Tocq) has submitted an amendment to repeal the requirement for Governors of the Board of The Ladies College to be appointed by a Resolution of the States.
Her amendment will also restructure the governance of the Independent schools, giving additional decisive powers to their respective boards.
Deputies Aidan Matthews and David De Lisle are seeking to remove a proposition that would see parents/carers fined for a child's non-school attendance.
“Subsection 19 (b) seeks to direct the Committee for Education, Sport & Culture to enable fixed penalty fines to be issued for non-school attendance, to be enforced only following detailed proposals returning to the States for consideration,” the amendment states.
“In its accompanying letter the Committee for Education, Sport & Culture cites UK evidence and expresses doubt that fines have long-term impact on persistent non-attendance, but can act as a deterrent for parents taking their children out of school for a term time holiday.
“Guernsey has specific issues with off-island transport links, and a culture of individual liberty that would object to penalties imposed by education authorities. The disbenefits outweigh any questionable expectation of gains in school attendance.”
Deputy St Pier has also submitted two amendments, seeking to make sure no elected Governor should receive any payment or retainer, and that the assembly make provisions for term limits for Governors.
Additionally, a last minute amendment from Deputies Peter Roffey and Heidi Soulsby would force ESC to work on a "far greater devolution of powers to the proposed governing bodies" as they hope to give the new, proposed boards more autonomy.
Two substantial amendments have been submitted by Deputies Lyndon Trott and Simon Fairclough as they try and keep a separation between ESC and the grant-aided colleges. You can read more about them HERE.
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