Section 51 Duty to favour education for children at mainstream maintained schoolsI1I2I3I4I5I6I7I8I9I10I11I12I13I14
England and Wales
A local authority exercising functions under this Part in relation to a child of compulsory school age with additional learning needs who should be educated in a school must secure that the child is educated in a mainstream maintained school unless any of the circumstances in paragraphs (a) to (c) of subsection (2) apply.
The circumstances are—
that educating the child in a mainstream maintained school is incompatible with the provision of efficient education for other children;
that educating the child otherwise than in a mainstream maintained school is appropriate in the best interests of the child and compatible with the provision of efficient education for other children;
that the child's parent wishes the child to be educated otherwise than in a mainstream maintained school.
A local authority may not rely on the exception in subsection (2)(a) unless there are no reasonable steps the authority could take to prevent the incompatibility.
Where a child's parent wishes his or her child to be educated otherwise than in a mainstream maintained school, subsection (2)(c) does not require a local authority to secure that the child is educated otherwise than in a mainstream maintained school.
Subsection (1) does not prevent a child from being educated in—
an independent school, or
a school approved under section 342 of the Education Act 1996 (c. 56),
if the cost is met otherwise than by a local authority.
Annotations
Commencement
- I1
S. 51 in force at 1.9.2021 for specified purposes by S.I. 2021/373, arts. 3, 4 (as amended by S.I. 2021/938, art. 2(3))
- I2
S. 51 in force at 1.9.2021 for specified purposes by S.I. 2021/373, arts. 6, 7 (as amended by S.I. 2021/938, art. 2(4)(5))
- I3
S. 51 in force at 1.1.2022 for specified purposes by S.I. 2021/1243, art. 3(i) (with arts. 4-23) (as amended by S.I. 2021/1428, art. 2; (10.6.2022) by S.I. 2022/663, art. 2 and (21.8.2023) by S.I. 2023/932, art. 2)
- I4
S. 51 in force at 1.1.2022 for specified purposes by S.I. 2021/1244, art. 3(i) (with arts. 4-21) (as amended by S.I. 2021/1428, art. 3; and (10.6.2022) by S.I. 2022/663, art. 3; and (21.8.2023) by S.I. 2023/932, art. 3)
- I5
S. 51 in force at 1.1.2022 for specified purposes by S.I. 2021/1245, arts. 3(i), 4 (with art. 1(4))
- I6
S. 51 in force at 1.9.2022 for specified purposes by S.I. 2022/893, art. 4 (with art. 1(2))
- I7
S. 51 in force at 1.9.2022 for specified purposes by S.I. 2022/891, art. 3(i) (with arts. 4-25) (as amended (21.8.2023) by S.I. 2023/932, art. 4)
- I8
S. 51 in force at 1.9.2022 for specified purposes by S.I. 2022/898, arts. 2(i), 3
- I9
S. 51 in force at 1.9.2022 for specified purposes by S.I. 2022/896, art. 3(i) (with arts. 4-22) (as amended (21.8.2023) by S.I. 2023/932, art. 5)
- I10
S. 51 in force at 1.9.2022 for specified purposes by S.I. 2022/892, art. 3(i) (with arts. 2, 4-18)
- I11
S. 51 in force at 1.9.2022 for specified purposes by S.I. 2022/897, art. 3(i) (with arts. 1(8), 4-21) (as amended (21.8.2023) by S.I. 2023/932, art. 6)
- I12
S. 51 in force at 1.9.2022 for specified purposes by S.I. 2022/895, arts. 3(i), 4
- I13
S. 51 in force at 1.9.2022 for specified purposes by S.I. 2022/894, art. 3(i)
- I14
S. 51 in force at 1.9.2025 for specified purposes by S.I. 2022/893, art. 2(i) (with art. 1(2))