Paragraph 4

Section 22 of the M1Education Act 1944 (powers of local education authority as to use and care of premises of voluntary schools) is amended as follows.

At the end of subsection (3) (premises to be under the control of the governing body, subject to any directions of the local education authority etc.) there is added “ except to the extent provided by any transfer of control agreement into which they may enter under subsection (3A) of this section. ”

After that subsection there is inserted—

“(3A)

Subject to subsection (3B) below the governing body of any voluntary school shall have power to enter into a transfer of control agreement with any body or person if their purpose, or one of their purposes, in doing so is to promote community use of the whole or any part of the school premises; and—

(a)

they may do so notwithstanding that the trust deed for the school would, apart from this subsection, expressly or impliedly preclude them from entering into such an agreement with that body or person or from conferring control on the controlling body in question; but

(b)

they shall not enter into a transfer of control agreement unless the use to which the premises may be put under the agreement is in all other respects in conformity with any such requirements, prohibitions or restrictions imposed by the trust deed as would obtain if control were being exercised by the governing body.

(3B)

The governing body shall not enter into any transfer of control agreement which makes or includes provision for the use of the whole or any part of the school premises during school hours unless they have first obtained the local education authority’s consent to the agreement in so far as it makes such provision.

(3C)

A transfer of control agreement shall be taken to include the following terms, namely—

(a)

that the governing body shall notify the controlling body of—

(i)

any directions given to the governing body by virtue of subsection (1) or (2) of this section; and

(ii)

any determination made by the foundation governors under subsection (1) of this section;

(b)

that the controlling body, in exercising control of the use of any premises subject to the agreement—

(i)

shall do so in accordance with any directions or determinations from time to time notified to that body in pursuance of paragraph (a) of this subsection; and

(ii)

shall have regard to the desirability of the premises being made available for community use; and

(c)

that, if reasonable notice is given in writing by the governing body to the controlling body that such of the premises subject to the agreement as may be specified in the notice are reasonably required for use by or in connection with the school at such times as may be so specified, then—

(i)

the use of the specified premises at those times shall be under the control of the governing body; and

(ii)

accordingly, those premises may be used at those times by or in connection with the school for such purposes as may be specified in the notice,

notwithstanding that their use at those times would, apart from this paragraph, be under the control of the controlling body.

(3D)

Where a transfer of control agreement makes express provision for the use of any school premises which are subject to the agreement to be occasionally under the control of the governing body, instead of the controlling body, in such circumstances, at such times or for such purposes as may be provided by or under the agreement, paragraph (c) of subsection (3C) above shall not have effect in relation to that agreement if, at the time of entering into it, the governing body were of the opinion that the express provision would be more favourable to the interests of the school than the term that would otherwise be included by virtue of that paragraph.

(3E)

Where the governing body enter into a transfer of control agreement, they shall so far as reasonably practicable secure that the controlling body exercises control in accordance with any such directions or determinations as are notified to that body in pursuance of subsection (3C)(a) of this section.”

For subsection (5) (which provides that, where the trust deed provides for any person other than the governing body being entitled to control the occupation and use of the school premises, the section shall have effect with the substitution for references to the governors of references to that person) there is substituted—

“(5)

Where the trust deed for a voluntary school provides for any person other than the governing body to be entitled to control the occupation and use of the school premises to any extent, then, if and to the extent that, disregarding any transfer of control agreement, the use of those premises is or would be under the control of such a person, this section shall have effect in relation to the school with the substitution for references to the governing body of references to that person.”

After that subsection there is inserted—

“(6)

In this section—

• “community use” means the use of school premises (when not required by or in connection with the school) by members of the local community;

• “the controlling body” means the body or person (other than the governing body) which has control of the use of the whole or any part of the school premises under the transfer of control agreement in question;

• “school hours” means any time during a school session or during a break between sessions on the same day;

• “school session”, in relation to any school, means a school session beginning and ending at such times as may from time to time be determined for that school in accordance with section 21 of the Education (No. 2) Act 1986; and

• “transfer of control agreement” means an agreement which, subject to subsection (3C) of this section, provides for the use of so much of the school premises as may be specified in the agreement to be under the control, at such times as may be so specified, of such body or person as may be so specified.”

In subsections (1) to (3) and (4), for “the governors” in each place there is substituted “ the governing body ”.