EDUCATION, ENGLAND PART 1 INTRODUCTION Citation and commencement 1 1 These Regulations may be cited as the General Teaching Council for England (Registration of Teachers) Regulations 2000. 2 Regulations 12, 16 and 17 shall come into force on 1st February 2001, and all other regulations shall come into force on 1st September 2000. Interpretation 2 In these Regulations, unless the context otherwise requires— “the 1988 Act ” means the Education Reform Act 1988 ; “the 1998 Act ” means the Teaching and Higher Education Act 1998; “advanced skills teacher” means a teacher who has been certified by an assessor appointed by the Secretary of State for Education and Employment as eligible for appointment to an advanced skills teacher post; “Code of Practice” means the code of practice authorised to be issued under regulation 13; “ the Council ” means the General Teaching Council for England; “employer” in relation to a teacher includes a person who engages or makes arrangements for the engagement of that teacher to provide his services as a teacher otherwise than under a contract of employment, and “prospective employer”, “employed” and “employment” shall be construed accordingly; “independent school” has the same meaning as in section 463 of the Education Act 1996 ; “induction period” means an induction period served in accordance with regulations made in relation to England or Wales under section 19 of the 1998 Act ; “institution within the further education sector” has the same meaning as in section 91(3) of the Further and Higher Education Act 1992 ; “institution within the higher education sector” has the same meaning as in section 91(5) of the Further and Higher Education Act 1992; “non-maintained special school” means a special school which is neither a community special school nor a foundation special school; “qualified teacher” has the same meaning as in section 218(2) of the 1988 Act ; “the Register” means the register of teachers which the Council are required to establish and maintain in accordance with section 3 of the 1998 Act and these Regulations, and “registration” shall be construed accordingly; “registered teacher” means a person for the time being registered under section 3 of the 1998 Act; “school maintained by a local education authority” has the same meaning as in section 142(1) of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998; and “special school” has the same meaning as in section 337(1) of the Education Act 1996 . PART II REGISTRATION OF TEACHERS Disqualification from registration 3 For the purposes of section 3(3)(d) of the 1998 Act, a person is not eligible for registration if he is ineligible for registration as a teacher in Scotland or Northern Ireland, or disqualified from being a teacher in any school, by virtue of— a section 11 of the Teaching Council (Scotland) Act 1965 ; b regulation 9 of the Teachers' (Eligibility) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1997 ; or c regulations made under article 36 of the Education (Northern Ireland) Order 1998 . Applications for registration 4 1 An application for registration shall include— a the teacher number assigned to the applicant by the Department for Education and Employment; b the applicant’s full name; c the applicant’s date of birth; d the applicant’s home address or other contact address; and e the date on which the applicant qualified as a teacher. 2 The Council may make further provision as to— a the form and manner in which applications for registration are to be made; and b the documentary and other evidence which is to accompany applications for registration. Registration on establishment of the Register 5 1 On the establishment of the Register, the Council may register persons eligible for registration who have not made applications for registration. 2 The Council shall send written confirmation of their registration to all persons registered under paragraph (1). 3 The Council shall at his request provide free of charge a copy of the information recorded on the Register against his name to a person registered under paragraph (1). Content of Register 6 1 There shall be recorded in the Register against the names of those registered in it the matters listed in Schedule 1. 2 The Council may make provision as to additional matters to be recorded in the Register. Division of Register into separate parts 7 The Council may make provision as to the division of the Register into separate parts. Amending entries on the Register 8 The Council may make provision as to the restoration and alteration of entries on the Register, and the transfer of entries between different parts of the Register. Charging of registration fees 9 The Council may make provision— a to charge fees fixed by them with the approval of the Secretary of State in respect of— i applications for registration or for the restoration of entries in the Register, and ii the retention of entries in the Register; b for there to be exceptions where fees are not to be charged; and c for them to refuse an application for registration until the appropriate fee has been paid. Removal of entries from the Register 10 The Council may make provision as to the removal of entries from the Register where the persons concerned have ceased to be eligible for registration, have failed to pay a registration fee, or otherwise. Issue and form of certificates of registration 11 The Council may make provision as to the issuing of certificates of registration to registered teachers, and as to the form of such certificates. Public access to the Register 12 1 The Council shall on request inform a member of the public whether or not a person is a registered teacher. 2 The Council may make available for inspection the names of teachers on the Register in such a manner as the Council determine. PART III CODE OF PRACTICE Issue and revision of Code of Practice 13 The Council may issue and from time to time revise a Code of Practice laying down standards of professional conduct and practice expected of registered teachers. Provision of copies of the Code of Practice 14 1 The Council shall make copies of the Code of Practice available free of charge to all registered teachers— a when the Code of Practice is first issued; b if the Council so determine, when the Code of Practice is revised; and c on a teacher’s first registration. 2 The Council may make available a copy of the Code of Practice free of charge at any website maintained by them on the internet. 3 The Council may make available a copy of the Code of Practice free of charge to a person— a who is the employer or prospective employer of a teacher, or who is concerned with the employment of teachers, or b who is engaged in or concerned with the training or professional development of teachers, at his request. 4 Subject to paragraphs (1) to (3), the Council shall on request provide copies of the Code of Practice on payment of such reasonable charge as they shall decide. PART IV SUPPLY OF INFORMATION Supply of information to teachers 15 1 The Council shall supply a registered teacher, at his request, with a copy of the information entered on the Register against his name free of charge. 2 The Council shall supply a person about whom they maintain records in accordance with an order under section 7(1) and (4) of the 1998 Act, at his request and free of charge, with a copy of such records as they maintain about him pursuant to such order. Supply of information to employers 16 1 Subject to paragraph (5), the Council shall if requested by an employer or prospective employer to whom this paragraph applies of— a a registered teacher; or b an unregistered person about whom they maintain records in accordance with an order under section 7(1) and (4) of the 1998 Act, supply that employer or prospective employer with the information set out in Schedule 2 in respect of the teacher or person concerned. 2 Paragraph (1) applies to an employer or prospective employer who is— a a local education authority; b the governing body of a school maintained by a local education authority; c the governing body of a non-maintained special school; d the proprietor of an independent school; e an institution within the higher education sector; or f an institution within the further education sector. 3 The following shall be treated as an employer or prospective employer to whom paragraph (1) applies— a a local education authority where the employer or prospective employer is the governing body of a school maintained by that authority (whether or not the governing body has made a request under paragraph (1)); b the appropriate diocesan authority in relation to a Church of England or Roman Catholic Church school (within the meaning of section 142 of the School Standards and Framework Act 1998) where the employer or prospective employer is the governing body of the school or the local education authority maintaining the school (whether or not the governing body or the authority have made a request under paragraph (1)); and c the Ministry of Defence in relation to a person appointed, or being considered for appointment, as a teacher at a school maintained or assisted by the Ministry of Defence. 4 A person to whom paragraph (1) applies, or who is to be treated as such a person, shall not disclose information supplied under this regulation to any person other than the teacher or person to whom the information relates. 5 Information may only be supplied under this regulation for reasons relating to a person’s employment or prospective employment as a teacher. 6 Before supplying information under this regulation, the Council must be satisfied that the person making the request proposes to use the information for the purposes referred to in paragraph (5). Supply of information to the General Teaching Council for Scotland 17 1 The Council shall on request supply the information set out in Schedule 2 in relation to— a a registered teacher; or b a person about whom they maintain records in accordance with an order under section 7(1) and (4) of the 1998 Act, to the General Teaching Council for Scotland. 2 Information may only be supplied pursuant to paragraph (1) on condition that the General Teaching Council for Scotland shall not disclose information supplied under this regulation to any person other than the teacher or person to whom the information relates. Jacqui Smith Parliamentary Under Secretary of State, Department for Education and Employment 7th August 2000