红桃影视

The government is consulting on proposals for new minimum service level (MSL) laws in schools when staff are on strike.

Education secretary Gillian Keegan said the new legislation would “help us protect children and young people鈥檚 education whilst balancing an individual鈥檚 right to strike”.

Ministers would set the expected MSL, and then it would be left up to schools to work out the required staff needed to meet the requirement.

Employers would be able to issue “work notices” to ensure they can deliver the MSL, with unions then obliged to take “reasonable steps to ensure compliance”.

The law would give a power to employers, rather than act as a duty they must meet. So it is not clear if use of the powers would be enforced by government. The Department for Education has been approached for comment.

The consultation was launched after ministers pulled out of talks to agree a “voluntary” plan with unions, who say the laws are a “fundamental attack on the democratic freedoms and rights of school staff”.

The Joint Committee on Human Rights (JCHR) breaks international law and is 鈥渇ailing to meet human rights obligations鈥�.

A nine-week , which will run through the Christmas holidays, closes on January 30. If approved by both Houses of Parliament, the new law would come into effect next September.

Here鈥檚 your trusty Schools Week round-up:

1. Two options considered

The consultation document sets out two options for minimum service levels.

Proposal one would involve prioritising attendance for 鈥渟pecific groups of children and young people鈥� in keeping with the DfE鈥檚 strike guidance.

These would include vulnerable children and young people, such as looked-after children or those with SEND, pupils due to take public exams and formal assessments and the children of critical workers.

Proposal 2 would involve the same approach as proposal 1 for secondary pupils, but would include *all* primary pupils. As previously reported, this would amount to three in four pupils expected to be in school during strikes.

2. Left up to heads to decide on 鈥榓ppropriate staffing levels鈥� …

The consultation states: 鈥淗eadteachers and principals are best placed to understand the needs of their staff, children and young people.

鈥淲e believe that they should have the flexibility to determine the appropriate staffing levels which are reasonably necessary to deliver an MSL in their setting.鈥�

This means that while the MSL will be set by ministers, it will actually be down to employers to decide 鈥渨hich and how many workers are identified in a work notice to deliver the MSL, rather than government setting specific ratios or percentages鈥�.

3. … and left up to schools to issue 鈥榳ork notices鈥�

The consultation states that if enacted, the decision to issue a 鈥渨ork notice鈥� to ensure minimum service levels would lie with the employer 鈥� in this case schools, academy trusts and local authorities.

鈥淚t will be at the discretion of individual employers whether or not to issue work notices to deliver the MSL. This legislation is intended to provide new tools to reduce any disproportionate impacts during strikes, not to prevent unions or individuals from taking industrial action.鈥�

Work notices must specify the people required to work and the work they must carry out to deliver the minimum service level. They must be issued a 鈥渕inimum of seven days prior to the strike day but can be varied by the employer up to four days before (unless a later time is agreed with the union)鈥�.

The legislation that allows for minimum service levels, which passed earlier this year, includes an 鈥渙bligation for unions to take reasonable steps to ensure compliance with work notices鈥�.

It is not clear what would happen if a school just chooses not to issue work notices. DfE has been asked for clarification.

4. Which schools and workers would this affect?

The DfE it wanted to see academies, maintained schools, 16 to 19 academies, FE settings and sixth form colleges in scope. Other institutions, such as private schools, would not be included.

The government 鈥渆xpects鈥� those named in a work notice 鈥渃ould鈥� include headteachers, principals, teachers, SENCOs, teaching assistants, teaching and learning support staff, designated safeguarding leads, administration staff and other non-teachers such as caretakers, technicians, cleaners and kitchen staff.

5. Which exam years are affected?

For the prioritisation of pupils sitting exams or national assessments, the DfE has said that the following pupils and students would be in scope.

• Year 6 pupils undertaking end of KS2 national curriculum assessments; and
• Pupils participating in statutory KS2 trials, such as the anchor trial
• Students taking GCSEs, AS and A levels and Vocational and Technical Qualifications (VTQs), including T Levels, and other national qualifications
• Year 11 students participating in the National Reference Test.

But the DfE does not appear to have reached a decision on when exactly exam year groups would be prioritised. The consultation document asked respondents if they should prioritise those with assessments within a month of a strike, or within the same academic year.

The DfE said it proposed redefining its list of critical workers to those specified in the legislation that passed earlier this year.

That covers鈥�

• Those in health services, fire and rescue services, education services, transport services, border security and the decommissioning of nuclear installations; and
• Those unable to strike, such as police officers, members of the armed forces and prison officers.

However, minimum service levels 鈥渨ould only apply to pupils and students where both parents, carers or guardians are critical workers, or for critical workers in a single parent household鈥�.

The DfE also proposed that MSL for critical workers would 鈥渙nly apply where children are not old enough to look after themselves鈥�. There is no legal threshold for this, but the DfE said children 鈥渦p to and including year 7 should be in scope鈥�.

7. Rotas for longer strikes

The DfE said it believed that under both proposals, rotas 鈥渟hould be used by schools and colleges for strike action lasting five consecutive school days or more鈥�.

This would 鈥渉elp make sure that for extended periods of strike action all children receive some face-to-face education鈥�.

鈥淭he objective of rotas would be that no child has a sustained period out of school in the event of extended periods of strike action. The use of rotas would be in addition to provision for the priority cohorts in proposal 1, and all those covered by proposal 2.鈥�

8. DfE 鈥榚xpects鈥� other pupils to get remote education

For pupils not prioritised for attendance on a strike day under either proposal, the DfE said it would 鈥渆xpect every effort to be made by schools to put in place appropriate arrangements for remote education鈥�.

鈥淭his aligns with DfE鈥檚 non-statutory guidance handling strike action in schools, which stipulates that, where possible, schools should provide remote education in line with the DfE鈥檚 providing remote education: guidance for schools.鈥�