§ Mr. Nicholas WintertonTo ask the Secretary of State for Education if he will make it his policy to require local education authorities or schools to inform him when teachers are suspended.
§ Mr. ForthNo. It is for the head teacher or governing body of a school to decide whether suspension is appropriate in the circumstances of each particular case, and my right hon. Friend has no power to intervene in such decisions. A requirement to report all cases in which a teacher is suspended would impose an additional and unnecessary burden on schools. Special schools, and 35W independent schools approved by my right hon. Friend to cater for pupils with special educational needs, are asked to inform the Department if a member of the school staff is suspended as a result of allegations of child abuse involving pupils at the school because of my right hon. Friend's responsibility for the approval of such schools.