The Education (School Teachers' Qualifications) (England) Regulations 2003

Citation, commencement and applicationE+W

1.  These Regulations may be cited as the Education (School Teachers' Qualifications) (England) Regulations 2003 and shall come into force on 1st August 2003.

2.  These Regulations shall apply in relation to England.

InterpretationE+W

3.  In these Regulations –

“the 1959 Regulations” means the Schools Regulations 1959 M1;

“the 1982 Regulations” means the Education (Teachers) Regulations 1982 M2;

“the 1989 Regulations” means the Education (Teachers) Regulations 1989 M3;

“the 1993 Regulations” means the Education (Teachers) Regulations 1993 M4;

“the 1999 Regulations” means the Education (Teachers' Qualifications and Health Standards) (England) Regulations 1999 M5;

“the 2003 Specified Work Regulations” means the Education (Specified Work and Registration) (England) Regulations 2003 M6;

[F1“The 2015 European Union Regulations” means the European Union (Recognition of Professional Qualifications) Regulations 2015;]

“accredited institution” means an institution accredited by the [F2Secretary of State] under regulation 11;

“city college” means a city technology college or a city college for the technology of the arts;

“the Council” means the General Teaching Council for England;

“employment” means employment under a contract of employment or the engagement of a person to provide his services otherwise than under a contract of employment and references to being employed shall be construed accordingly;

“further education institution” means an institution which provides further education and is maintained by a local education authority, or is within the further education sector;

“hearing impaired” means deaf or partially hearing;

“institution” means a further education institution or an institution within the higher education sector;

“school” means a school maintained by a local education authority or a special school not so maintained;

“teaching” means carrying out work of a kind which is specified by regulations made under section 133 of the Education Act 2002 and “to teach” shall be construed accordingly; and

“visually impaired” means blind or partially sighted.

Revocations and transitional provisionsE+W

4.—(1) The regulations mentioned in Part 1 of Schedule 1 are revoked to the extent specified in that Schedule.

(2) The transitional provisions mentioned in Part 2 of Schedule 1 have effect.

Qualified teacher statusE+W

[F35.  Subject to regulations 6, 7, 8 and 9, a person is a qualified teacher if that person is mentioned in paragraphs 2 to 13B of Part 1 of Schedule 2.]

Mandatory Qualifications for teachers of hearing impaired pupilsE+W

6.  Subject to regulations 8 and 9, a person shall not be a qualified teacher for the purpose of teaching a class of pupils who are hearing impaired unless in addition to being a qualified teacher in accordance with regulation 5, he possesses a qualification approved by the Secretary of State for the purpose of this regulation.

Mandatory Qualifications for teachers of visually impaired pupilsE+W

7.  Subject to regulations 8 and 9, a person shall not be a qualified teacher for the purpose of teaching a class of pupils who are visually impaired unless in addition to being a qualified teacher in accordance with regulation 5, he possesses a qualification approved by the Secretary of State for the purpose of this regulation.

Mandatory Qualifications for teachers of pupils who are both hearing and visually impairedE+W

8.—(1) Subject to paragraph (2) and regulation 9, a person shall not be a qualified teacher for the purpose of teaching a class of pupils who are both hearing impaired and visually impaired unless in addition to being a qualified teacher in accordance with regulation 5, he possesses a qualification approved by the Secretary of State for the purpose of this regulation.

(2) A person who possesses a qualification approved under regulation 6 or 7 shall be a qualified teacher for the purpose of paragraph (1) if his head teacher is satisfied that no teacher with a qualification approved under paragraph (1) is available to teach the class in question.

9.  A person who does not possess a qualification approved under regulation 6, 7 or 8 shall be a qualified teacher for the purpose of teaching a class of pupils who are –

(a)hearing impaired,

(b)visually impaired, or

(c)both hearing impaired and visually impaired,

if his head teacher is satisfied that the person in question is in the process of obtaining the qualification required by regulation 6, 7 or 8, as the case may be, and provided that the aggregate period for which he teaches a class of pupils by virtue of this regulation does not exceed three years.

[F4Status of teachers from other European states who are qualified only to teach pupils with special educational needsE+W

9A.—(1) A person described in paragraph 8A of Part 1 of Schedule 2 is a qualified teacher only for the purposes of teaching in a special school or a specialist unit.

(2) In this regulation, “specialist unit” means an arrangement—

(i)within a school maintained by a local authority which is not a special school; and

(ii)in which children with special educational needs are taught wholly or mainly within classes designated for such children.]

Award of qualified teacher status by the General Teaching Council for EnglandE+W

F510.  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Accredited InstitutionsE+W

[F611.  The Secretary of State may accredit an institution as a provider of courses or programmes of initial school teacher training.]