Apprenticeships, Skills, Children and Learning Act 2009 (Consequential Amendments) (England and Wales) Order 2010

In opening the debate, I should like briefly to set out what this and the second order seek to do. The draft Local Education Authorities and Children’s Services Authorities (Integration of Functions) Order 2010 will bring primary legislation into line with current policy and practice, and thus I hope remove any scope for confusion. Since the Children Act 2004, the separate local authority departments responsible for education and for children’s social care have been integrated under a single director of children’s services. This renders the term "local education authority" obsolete in law. The order removes references to the term "local education authority" and to the term "children’s services authority", which was introduced by the Children Act 2004. They are replaced with the single term "local authority". This brings the terminology used in primary legislation into line with current policy and practice. I hope the Committee will agree that these changes, which have the support of the Local Government Association, are sensible. As your Lordships will know, however, the term "local education authority" has a long history in primary legislation. In the vast majority of cases, replacing "local education authority" with "local authority" is straightforward, but in some cases this has not been possible. For example, some provisions in the Children Act 1989 would now read that "the local authority should consult the local authority". The intention of the Act when originally passed was probably to ensure that staff in local authority education departments worked closely with their colleagues in local authority children’s social services. We have, of course, dealt with this through the Children Act 2004, which created the post of director of children’s services responsible for both. So where the effect would now be that the local authority is instructed to consult the local authority, we have repealed the relevant provision or made it clear that it applies only to consultation between different authorities. In addition, there are several cases which refer to the functions of a local education authority. If the expression was just changed to the "functions of a local authority", it might include everything a local authority does. To deal with this, we have introduced the concept of the "education functions of the local authority". This mirrors the existing concept of the "social services functions of the local authority" and enables us to dispense with the term "local education authority" without changing the meaning of the original legislation. The bulk of the order deals with anomalies such as these. However, the intention is clear: to retain the original meaning by using terminology that is current and relatively accessible. The second order that we are considering today is the Apprenticeships, Skills, Children and Learning Act 2009 (Consequential Amendments) (England and Wales) Order 2010. This order is necessary and is a technical part of the parliamentary process that was set in train by the passage of the Act in November 2009. It made provision for the replacement of the Learning and Skills Council with two new systems that will drive forward pre-19 and post-19 education and skills. These changes will take effect from 1 April 2010, and the draft consequential amendments order will provide for the further consequential amendments to primary legislation not covered by the Act. The draft consequential amendments order repeals all remaining references to the Learning and Skills Council for England set out in primary legislation and replaces them with references to the chief executive of the Skills Funding Agency, the Young People’s Learning Agency and local authorities, whichever is the appropriate body. As noble Lords will be aware, the 2009 Act also creates a new sixth-form college sector, providing a mechanism for existing further education corporations to be redesignated as sixth-form college corporations and allowing the establishment of new sixth-form college corporations to run institutions that cater mainly for those of sixth-form age. The consequential amendments order will make the necessary amendments to primary legislation that are consequential to these reforms. In particular, it will amend legislation to replace references to further education corporations with references to sixth-form college corporations or sixth-form colleges, where appropriate, and ensure that existing legislation recognises the new sixth-form college sector. Finally, the order makes technical amendments to the Childcare Act 2006. These are needed to give full effect to Section 199 of the 2009 Act, which inserted provisions into the Childcare Act about inspection of children’s centres by Ofsted. The order amends the Childcare Act so that the definitions of the terms "prescribed" and "regulations" in the Act apply to the new regulation-making powers about children’s centre inspections. I thank the Joint Committee on Statutory Instruments and the Merits Committee for considering these draft regulations. Subject to parliamentary approval, we intend to bring this order into force at the same time as the main provisions of the 2009 Act, on 1 April 2010. We intend the integration of functions order to come into force five weeks after it is signed, at the same time as another order amending subordinate legislation. That order is a negative resolution. I commend the order to the Committee.