Education

Obstructing a school inspection is to become a criminal offence in Northern Ireland under proposals aimed at improving co-operation with the inspection process. The Department of Education has launched a public consultation on the proposals, which will run until 10 July 2025.

Solicitor Catherine Chambers has been appointed to the board of Northern Ireland's Education Authority (EA). Mrs Chambers has over 20 years' experience as a solicitor with specialist educational law experience, having worked as a partner in private practice and subsequently as a solicitor in the Edu

The Data Protection Commission (DPC) has published a new data protection toolkit for schools. The 73-page resource aims to assist schools in meeting their data protection obligations when processing the personal data of children.

Schools should prepare for the impending publication of a landmark report into historical sexual abuse in day and boarding schools run by religious orders, a lawyer has warned. The final report of the scoping inquiry led by Mary O'Toole SC is expected to be published by education minister Norma Fole

Law student Alannah Murray criticises the State's record on vindicating disabled children's right to education. The only positive obligation on the State is to provide free primary education, per the decision in TD v. Minister for Education, as outlined in Article 42.4 of the Constitution. It was re

Almost nine out of 10 school principals lack formal training in managing disciplinary issues, a survey by Mason Hayes & Curran has found. The business law firm polled more than 300 school leaders at its recent webinar titled 'Procedures and Policies Protect Principals'.

Northern Ireland’s Court of Appeal has determined that while Northern Ireland's religious education curriculum was conveyed in breach of the “objectivity test” enunciated by the European Court of Human Rights, no breach of Article 2, Protocol 1 ECHR had occurred. Delivering judgmen

Digital exam papers will be made available to Junior Certificate students with additional needs following a legal challenge taken by a student with a severe visual impairment, assisted by the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission. The rights body acknowledged the work of Community Law & Med

A disability discrimination case brought against a Belfast primary school with support from the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland has been settled without admission of liability. The parents of Violet Heasley, who lives with osteogenesis imperfecta (brittle bone disease), brought a case again

Governance expert Dr Maurice Keady has been appointed to the governing body of Belfast Metropolitan College. Dr Keady's appointment by the Department for the Economy is for a four-year period effective from 1 August 2023.

The High Court has dismissed a personal injuries action brought against a school by a former student alleging negligence in the conduct of a PE class. The student claimed that a relay race had been organised negligently and, as a result, he fell into a wall. Delivering judgment in the case, Ms Justi

Seven out of 10 school leaders do not feel confident managing staff under performance, according to a new survey by Mason Hayes & Curran. The business law firm polled 285 educators and school leaders at a recent webinar on recruiting and managing school staff, which discussed the potential pitfa

The Children's Law Centre (CLC) has called for urgent action after an independent review of special educational needs (SEN) services in Northern Ireland found that early intervention for children is almost impossible under the current system and processes. The Ipsos review, published yesterday, was

Proposals to protect schools from "unreasonable litigation" in relation to playground accidents is to be brought forward in the Seanad. The Civil Liability (Schools) Bill 2023, proposed by Independent NUI Senator Rónán Mullen, would give explicit legal protection to schools operating a

A new survey by Mason Hayes & Curran finds that cyber bullying is an issue for more than 89 per cent of schools, with 16 per cent saying it is an issue “frequently” and 73 per cent citing “occasionally”. The business law firm polled more than 100 educators and school lead