7.1              Enrolment of Students

Policy and Procedure

The Education Act, 1998, Section 15(2)(d) requires the Board of Management to publish the policy of the school concerning the admission to and participation in the school. This policy is subject to conditions laid down in the Education (Welfare) Act, 2000 as interpreted and administered by the National Educational Welfare Board (NEWB).

ACCS guidelines for the development of a school admissions policy have been published and are available on the ACCS website at www.accs.ie.

The enrolment and induction of new students is a vital part of the educational process, and schools are advised that a lot of effort should be invested in the integration of new pupils into the life of the school.

School Attendance Records

The Education (Welfare) Act, 2000 obliges schools to keep accurate and updated records of the enrolment and attendance of students. Such records are subject to monitoring by the NEWB and must accord with the “Guidelines for Reporting Student Absences and Expulsions – Primary and Post Primary Schools” as issued by NEWB. These guidelines may be accessed on the NEWB website at http://www.newb.ie/downloads/word/reportingguidelines0506_e.doc.

Removal of a student from the School Roll

Boards of Management are advised to draw up a policy dealing with the removal of a student from the roll to cover such eventualities as the case of a student who ceases attendance without explanation or where a student who has enrolled, does not attend at the start of the school year. The policy must be reasonable, must conform to the rules of natural justice and, ideally, should be made known to parents when they first enrol a student.

The following suggestions may be helpful to Boards of Management and Principals when formulating this policy:

a)      If there has been continuous absence for a period of days without explanation, or a failure to attend at the beginning of the school year, the parent(s)/guardian(s) of the student should be written to, seeking an explanation, and advising them that, unless confirmation is received from them that s/he intends to return to school, the matter will be referred to the NEWB and the removal of the student from the roll will be considered. If there is no response, the intention to remove the student from the roll and the reason should be notified in writing to the parent(s)/guardian(s) by registered post, if necessary. The parent(s)/guardian(s) should be given an opportunity to make representations on the student’s behalf within a specified period and the NEWB should be notified.

b)      If a student, with the knowledge of the school, moves to another school, s/he should be removed from the roll only in accordance with the Education (Welfare) Act, 2000, Section 20(4), (6).

c)      The removal of any student from the roll should be confirmed in writing to the parents/guardians of the student.

The re-enrolment of a student who has been removed from the roll is a decision for the Principal and the Board of Management to be taken in accordance with the school’s published admissions policy. In considering such decision Boards of Management must have due regard to the provisions of the Education (Welfare) Act, 2000 and of the appeal procedures provided for in Section 29 of the Education Act, 1998.

Repeat of a School Year (ref. C.L. 2/95)

The standard maximum period of second-level education for all students is six years. However, authority is delegated to Boards of Management to permit a student to repeat a year in any one of the following circumstances.

a)      If there has been prolonged absence through illness - either eight weeks continuously, or intermittent absences over a period of at least sixteen weeks, and for an average of two and a half days per week during that period, in the previous school year.

b)      The absence and the reason for it must be certified by the Board of Management. If the reason is             related to health, that reason must also be certified by a doctor.

c)      If there is medical certification that a serious illness or injury, although not requiring eight week’s absence, has been so traumatic as to affect adversely the student’s academic performance.

d)     If there has been serious family trauma (death of a parent, separation, violence, etc.) which, in the opinion of school management, has had a seriously damaging effect on the student’s academic performance.

e)      If the academic record of the student is very poor and s/he requires regular remedial teaching and there is sufficient evidence to establish that (i) the student’s academic record is very poor, (ii) that the student is in need of regular remedial teaching and (iii) that the pupil can benefit from the extra year.

f)       If, because of change of domicile or for other reasons, a student transfers to another school and, as a result, must change subjects.

For full details of all the requirements relating to the repeat of a year, Boards and Principals are advised to consult DES Circular Letter 02/95.