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Appendix
3865: Parents' Experiences of Education Appeals Committees
1.1.2 Topic Guide
The following question areas have been developed to provide a framework for discussion. All topic areas of relevance should be covered at some point in the discussion but should be addressed in an order that facilitates easy and relaxed conversation. Be sure to allow opportunities for respondents to raise new or different issues that they consider significant to the core subjects.
Background on respondent
- Recap on respondent details, including reason for appeal, date of appeal and outcome of appeal etc
The Appeals Process
- Explore family/pupil's situation leading up to appeal (eg problems at school, preference for a school in a different area)
- What factor(s) prompted the appeal and how did respondent obtain information relating to the appeals process and procedures
Initial approach to appeals committee
- Initial action taken by parent to appeal ( NB For placement requests parents are required to write a letter to the appeals committee within 28 days of their request being turned down - check if the local authority informed them that the could do this, and if they did so)
- Details of response to initial enquiry in terms of speed/clarity/ongoing feedback regarding appeal procedure etc (probing how long to get acknowledgement of their letter from the committee; how long it took to set up the hearing); what advice was offered and how effective/useful was this, together with reasons
- Did they seek/get advice from anyone other that the local authority, e.g. other parents, Scottish Parent Teacher Council, School Board, other groups.
- (if relevant) Details of pre-hearing meeting (probing usefulness, organisation/set up of meeting, depth and amount of information provided, fairness)
- What advice or information was provided to them and how would they describe this (useful, easy to understand/clear, informative etc) and what options were presented.
- Were the rules and procedure on submitting evidence explained to them
- What options were available in terms of the hearing (e.g. they could attend the hearing in person, they could take up to three people with them, they could ask another person to speak on their behalf, they could put their case in writing in advance, anything in writing should be provided at least ten days before the hearing)
The Hearing
- Who attended the hearing and on what basis was this decision taken; what were the advantages/disadvantages of the options available
- On what basis were date, time and location selected and what flexibility, if any, was offered to respondent
- How would respondents describe the hearing (fair/unbiased/neutral); were respondents/their representative(s) given the opportunity to express their situation and requests; were these listened to; what feedback/commentary was provided etc
- Did they feel they were on an equal footing at the hearing with the education authority
The EAC panel
(Note that the committee should consist of 3, 5, or 7 members who are to be nominated by the authority comprising of elected members, or members of the education authority's education committee (which could include teachers, religious representatives, and co-opted members) and other people who are either a) parents or children of school age, b) persons who in the opinion of the authority are acquainted with the educational conditions in the locality, or c) persons with experience in education. The committee should be carefully selected to ensure avoidance of any bias. Individuals who have been involved with the case or are connected with any of the schools involved cannot be members).
- How would respondents describe the composition of the EAC panel (eg. fair/unbiased/ impartial/disconnected from the child for whom appeal was being made/independent from and uninfluenced by the authority/unknown to the parent/professional in their approach/ appropriately selected
- To what extent did the panel listen to what parent/representative had to say and discuss the issue before reaching a decision
The role of the clerk
( NB: The clerk should normally be an appropriate officer of the local authority and will be responsible for arranging the hearings and ordering the business at the hearing. They will be expected to take notes and record decisions. They should be an employee whose normal role in the local authority does not involve dealing with the admission of children to school or children with special educational needs. There should therefore be no conflict of interest.)
- To what extent was the role of the clerk explained? How effectively did the clerk fulfil their roles and duties, together with reasons (neutral/objective etc);
Receiving a decision
- How long did it take to hear about the decision and how was the parent informed of decision; how easy to understand the communication setting out the decision
- Reactions to the decision
- What further opportunities to appeal were offered and what did this entail
General comments on overall appeals procedure
- Level of satisfaction of the outcome of the appeal overall, together with reasons
- Perception of impartiality and independence of Education Appeal Committees
- General comments on the appeal procedure as a whole (regardless of outcome); what changes should be made to the process in the future and why
Hearing venue
- Reactions to venue in terms of location (neutral location/Council offices etc); were special needs required and if so, were they catered for (probe translation services, disabled access etc.).
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