46. Mr. L'ESTRANGE MALONEasked the President of the Board of Education whether all private schools. whether day schools or boarding schools, including nursery schools, are required to be registered by any authority and are visited by Board of Education inspectors; whether private, day, or boarding schools are required to conform to any regulations as to sanitation, provision of water supply, lighting and heating arrangements, and precautions in case of fire, or whether they are subject to inspection by any authority; and, if so, how often?
§ Mr. FREDERICK THOMSON (Vice-Chamberlain of the Household)Private schools are not required to be registered under the local education authority and the Board of Education have no power to inspect such schools unless they are invited to do so. As regards sanitation, water supply, and ventilation, these schools are subject to the requirements of the general law and by-laws and the local sanitary authority have the right of inspection when it appears to them to be necessary; as regards fire precautions, my right hon. Friend would refer the hon. Member to the reply given by the Home Secretary to the hon. Member for Central Southwark (Mr. Day) on the 22nd March last, a copy of which he is sending him.