Regulation 2 Interpretation

In these Regulations, except where the context otherwise requires–

• “the 1996 Act” means the Education Act 1996;

• “assessment” in relation to a maintained school means assessment pursuant to orders made under section 356 of the 1996 Act^f1 and “level” shall be construed in accordance with the provisions of such orders and in relation to a CTC means assessment pursuant to an agreement with the Secretary of State made under section 482 of the 1996 Act;

• “assessment term” means the term in which assessment is completed;

• “attainment targets” has the meaning given by section 353 of the 1996 Act;

• “authority”, in relation to a school maintained by a local education authority^f2, means that authority and, in relation to a non-maintained special school or an independent school, means the local education authority in whose area the school is situated;

• “external marking agency” means a body nominated by the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority^f3 and approved by the Secretary of State to mark NC tests;

• “CTC” means city technology college and city college for the technology of the arts;

• “core subject” means any of the following subjects, English, mathematics or science;

• “GCE ’A’ level examinations” and “GCE ’AS’ examinations” means General Certificate of Education advanced level examinations and General Certificate of Education advanced supplementary examinations respectively;

• “GCSE” means General Certificate of Secondary Education;

• “GNVQ” means a General National Vocational Qualification;

• “maintained school” means–

  1. (i)

     in relation to the period before 1st September 1999,

     1. (a)

        any county, voluntary or grant-maintained school; or

     2. (b)

        any maintained special or grant-maintained special school which is not established in a hospital;

  2. (ii)

     in relation to the period on and after that date,

     1. (a)

        any community, foundation or voluntary school, or

     2. (b)

        any community or foundation special school which is not established in a hospital^f4

     but excludes any nursery school;

• “middle deemed secondary school” means a middle school deemed to be a secondary school by virtue of the Education (Middle Schools) Regulations 1980^f5;

• “NC tests” means National Curriculum tests administered to pupils for the purpose of assessing the level of attainment which they have achieved in any core subject being tests laid down in provisions made by the Secretary of State under the appropriate order made under section 356 of the 1996 Act in force when those tests were administered^f6;

• “non-maintained special school” means a special school which is not maintained by an authority;

• “public examination” means a public examination which is for the time being prescribed by regulations made under section 453 of the 1996 Act^f7;

• “reporting school year” means the school year immediately preceding the school year in which information provided to the Secretary of State under these Regulations is to be published by him or, as the case may be, local education authorities;

• “school day” has the meaning given by section 579(1) of the 1996 Act;

• “school year” has the meaning given by section 579(1) of the 1996 Act;

• “special educational needs” has the meaning given by section 312(1) of the 1996 Act;

• “special school” has the meaning given by section 337 of the 1996 Act;

• “unauthorised absence” means an occasion on which a pupil is recorded as absent without authority pursuant to the Education (Pupil Registration Regulations) 1995^f8 and “authorised absence” shall be construed accordingly; and

• “unit”, in relation to a vocational qualification, means a module or part of a course leading to that qualification which, when successfully completed, can be counted together with other modules or parts towards obtaining that qualification.

In these Regulations, except where the context otherwise requires–

Particulars to which these Regulations apply may be made available in the form of data from which the particulars are capable of being extracted by computer.

For the purposes of these Regulations any examination for the GCSE for which a pupil aged 15 was entered during a previous school year shall be treated as such an examination for which the pupil was entered during the reporting school year.

Information relating to authorised or unauthorised absences shall not include any information relating to any period after the Friday before the last Monday in May in the reporting school year.

In calculating the number of GCE ’A’ level examinations for which a pupil was entered, a GCE ’AS’ examination shall be treated as the equivalent of half a GCE ’A’ level examination.

In these Regulations, unless the context otherwise requires, any reference to a numbered regulation or Schedule is a reference to the regulation or Schedule bearing that number in these Regulations and any reference in a regulation or Schedule to a numbered paragraph is to the paragraph in that regulation or Schedule bearing that number.