Proposals

Consultation questions

Composition and membership of the Council

Proposals made in the paper assume that the Council will continue to have 49 members, but Ministers will take a view on the overall size in the light of responses

Ministers are firmly committed to registered teachers having a majority of places on the GTC.

There should be 25 out of 49 places for registered teachers, but Ministers will give further consideration to the balance of interests in the light of responses.

Do you agree with the proposals summarised in paragraph 22? If not, please explain why. If you favour a smaller or larger Council please say why. If you consider that a particular "constituency" should be increased or decreased, please say why and how you would see this impacting on other areas of representation and the balance of interests on the Council.

Would a rolling programme of appointments be sensible? Should this apply to places for both elected and appointed members?

Elected teacher representation on the GTC should be divided into a number of constituencies.

Do you agree that the representation of registered teachers on the Council should be divided into constituencies? Should they be the ones set out in paragraph 18? If not, what should they be? Do you have a view on the balance of representation between the different constituencies within the proposed total of 25 places?

A range of other interests should be represented on the GTC through appointed members and Ministers' nominees.

If you consider that there are other interests not mentioned which should be represented on the GTC, please say what these are and whether you consider they should be represented through explicit nominating rights or be taken into account in Ministers' nominations

Do you have a view on whether Ministers' nominees should be able to be appointed on a different timetable from the other members, in order that the nominations could take into account any obvious gaps remaining after the other members are in place?

Committee structure

The provisions relating to the existing Investigating and Disciplinary committees should be extended to include consideration of whether teachers who have been dismissed for incompetence should have their registration withdrawn, or some intermediate sanction applied, through the creation of a new Professional Conduct Committee.

Do you agree with this proposal?

Increased range of sanctions in discipline cases

The GTC should have an extended range of sanctions available to it in carrying out its disciplinary function.

Are the additional sanctions described in paragraph 29 the most appropriate ones? Would temporary suspension in particular be useful and workable?

Expansion of register

The information held on the register should be increased as soon as possible in line with employers' requirements and recommendations in the report.

Is there other additional information which should be held on the register, eg ethnic origin, whether a teacher is a registered disabled person?

Ministers propose to include a general power in legislation to allow them to prescribe in regulations, if necessary, the information which should be held on the register.

Ministers also propose that an expanded register should be underpinned by:

• an explicit requirement on the GTC to provide information from the register to the employers or prospective employers of teachers;
• an explicit requirement on the employers of registered teachers to notify the GTC of cases where registered teachers are dismissed on the grounds of misconduct or incompetence or resign in circumstances where their employers would have dismissed them, or considered dismissing them, on these grounds had they not resigned.

Amendment of the 1965 Act would be necessary to permit the full range of disciplinary sanctions to be recorded on the register.

Do you agree with these proposed changes in legislation, relating to an expansion of the GTC's register?

Provision to allow part-time teachers to stand for election to the GTC

Ministers propose to amend legislation to remove the requirement for those standing in the GTC elections to be in full time employment.

Do you agree that this change should be made?

Right of appeal against decision of committee on exceptional admission to the register

Provision will be made for an independent appeals mechanism against decisions of the committee on exceptional admission to the register in line with ECHR requirements.

Extension of GTC's remit into teacher incompetence

Ministers plan to bring forward legislation which would:

enable the GTC to record on the register that a teacher has been dismissed on incompetence grounds or has resigned after notice of a hearing which could lead to such dismissal;

enable the GTC to consider, where a teacher has been dismissed by an authority on incompetence grounds, whether the teacher should be deregistered (or some other intermediate sanction should be applied). The GTC should also be able to consider whether to take action in cases where it has been notified that a registered teacher has resigned in circumstances where their employers would have dismissed them, or considered dismissing them, on these grounds had they not resigned.

Do you agree that the GTC's powers should be extended into the area of teachers' incompetence, as described? Should the sanctions be the same as those in misconduct cases ?

De-registration on ill-health grounds

Ministers consider that there could be cases, although probably very few in number, where it would be appropriate for the GTC to consider whether a teacher's medical condition is such that the teacher should not remain on the register.

Do you consider that the GTC should have a power to de-register teachers on ill-health grounds? In what circumstances should such de-registration be considered? Who should be able to make referrals to the GTC for consideration of de-registration on ill-health grounds?

Extension of GTC's remit into teachers' continuing professional development

Scottish Ministers propose that the GTC should have a role in teachers' CPD as described in paragraph 43.

Do you agree that the role for the GTC in CPD recommended in the report is appropriate and that the legislation should be amended as proposed? Do you agree that the issues of an active register and accreditation of staff development courses should be deferred for reconsideration in 5 years' time? If you consider that earlier implementation of either or both of these aspects would be feasible and desirable, please describe how you would see arrangements working.

Widening of GTC's advisory role beyond Scottish Ministers

Scottish Ministers propose to give the GTC explicit powers to provide advice on matters falling within its remit to relevant persons or bodies and education authorities in particular.

Do you agree that this change should be made?

New power requiring the GTC to act in the public interest

Ministers propose to include provision in legislation that the GTC should have regard to the public interest in carrying out its functions.

Do you agree that this change should be made?

New power to borrow money

Ministers propose to include in legislation a power to enable the GTC to borrow money with the consent of Scottish Ministers.

Do you agree that this change should be made?