| ACAS | Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service - provides a conciliation service in employment tribunal cases under discrimination as well as general employment law. |
| CA | City Academy – a type of independent school established under section 482 of the EA as amended by section 130 of the LSA. Intention is that CAs, to replace seriously failing schools, will be established by partnerships involving the Government, and voluntary sector, church and business sponsors. |
| CCTA | City College for the Technology of the Arts – a type of independent school established under section 482 of the EA with a curricular emphasis on technology in its application to the performing and creative arts. |
| CETW | National Council for Education and Training for Wales - established under section 30 of the LSA with broadly similar functions to the LSC in England. |
| CTC | City Technology College – a type of independent school established under section 482 of the EA with a curricular emphasis on science and technology. |
| DDA | Disability Discrimination Act 1995 |
| DDA Part 3 Code | Code of Practice: Rights of Access Goods, Facilities, Services and Premises – gives practical guidance on how to avoid discrimination against disabled people in their access to services or premises. |
| disabled person | Section 1 of the DDA defines a disabled person as someone who has “a physical or mental impairment which has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on his ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities”. This definition is expanded elsewhere in the DDA and in The Disability Discrimination (Meaning of Disability) Regulations 1996. There is also statutory guidance on the meaning of disability (see paragraph 35 of these notes). |
| DRC | Disability Rights Commission – a body established by the DRCA which has similar functions in relation to disability issues as the Commission for Racial Equality and the Equal Opportunities Commission have in relation to race and sex issues respectively. One of the DRC’s broad objectives is to work towards the elimination of discrimination against disabled people. |
| DRCA | Disability Rights Commission Act 1999 |
| DRTF | Disability Rights Task Force (described at paragraphs 9 – 12 of these notes) |
| EA | Education Act 1996 |
| FEFC | Further Education Funding Council |
| FEFCW | Further Education Funding Council for Wales |
| independent school | A school which falls within the definition contained in section 463 of the EA. In particular, these schools are not maintained by LEAs. |
| LA | Local Authority (in terms of the provision of education, the broad equivalent, in Scotland, of the LEA in England and Wales). |
| LEA | Local Education Authority – the local government organisation responsible for providing education. |
| LSA | Learning and Skills Act 2000 |
| LSC | Learning and Skills Council for England - a non-departmental public body, established under section 1 of the LSA which is responsible for post-16 learning, other than higher education. It will take over the functions performed by the FEFC and have the general oversight of the provision of adult education, although LEAs will continue to provide adult education under that oversight. |
| maintained school | A community, voluntary, foundation, community special or foundation special school, except, in relation to Part 4 of the EA, special schools established in a hospital. These are all schools maintained by an LEA. |
| maintained nursery school | A nursery school funded by an LEA which is not a special school (See s.22(9) of the SSFA). |
| NAW | National Assembly for Wales |
| parent | In relation to England and Wales, section 576 of the Education Act 1996 provides that ‘a parent’ in relation to a child or young person includes somebody who has care of him or, who is not a parent of his, but has parental responsibility for him. Parental responsibility has the same meaning as in the Children Act 1989. In relation to Scotland, ‘parent’ has the meaning given in section 135 of the Education (Scotland) Act 1980. ‘Parent’ includes guardian and any person who is liable to maintain or has the actual custody of a child or young person. |
| PRUs | Pupil Referral Units – schools established and maintained by LEAs which are specially organised to provide education for children of compulsory school age who, because of illness, exclusion from school or other reasons, might not otherwise receive suitable education. (see s.19(2) EA). |
| SEN | Special Educational Needs – a child has special educational needs if he or she has learning difficulties that need special educational help. The legal definition is in section 312 EA. |
| SEN Code of Practice | Code of Practice on the Identification and Assessment of Special Educational Needs. |
| SENT | Special Educational Needs Tribunal - a tribunal established under section 333 EA to consider parents’ appeals against decisions of LEAs in England and Wales about assessment and statements of their children’s SEN. |
| SENDIST | Special Educational Needs and Disability Tribunal - the SENT will, by virtue of this Act, become the SENDIST and also hear cases of disability discrimination in schools in England and Wales. |
| Special schools | Schools which are specially organised to make special educational provision for pupils with special educational needs. Special schools are either maintained schools or non-maintained special schools approved under section 342 EA. |
| SSFA | School Standards and Framework Act 1998 |
