• Establishment of Boards of Management in all schools in receipt of Public Funding.  This will ensure that Parents, Teachers and Patrons will have rights under law and be involved in the management of their schools.
• Sets out the functions of School Principals and Teachers.
• Makes provision for appeals and grievances.
• Provides for the rights of students over 18 to access their school records and for the Parents of those under 18 to do likewise.
• Education and Welfare Act – October, 2000
• Provides a statutory framework to deal with the problems of non-attendance, early dropout and low performance among primary and post-primary students.
• School-leaving age is 16 years of completion of 3 years second-level education, whichever is later.
• Establishment of a National Welfare Board to promote school attendance.
• Appointment of Education Welfare Officers to work with Schools and assist in coping with problems of poor attendance and disruptive pupils.
• The National Education Welfare Board will have overall responsibility for the implementation and operation of the Act.
• Obligation on Boards of Management to source a place in another school for a student under threat of expulsion.

Provides for amendments to the law relating to the membership of VECs and performance of their functions.

“8. (1) Subject to subsection (2), a vocational education committee shall consist of the following members , that is to say-

(a) 9 members elected by-

• The council of the county being the vocational education area for which that committee is the vocational education committee, or
• The council of the county being or including the county vocational educational area, for which that committee is the vocational education committee, as may be appropriate, from among the members of the council concerned,

(b) In the case of the a county vocational education area that contains one or   more urban districts-

(i) (In the case of a council areas containing not more than 4 urban districts) 2 members elected by the council of each urban district within the county vocational education area concerned, whether members of the council concerned or not, or

(ii) (In respect of council areas containing more than 4 urban districts) 1 member elected by the council of each urban district within the county vocational education area concerned, whether a member of the council concerned or not,

(c) 2 members elected by parents of students who have not reached the age of 18 years and who are registered as students at recognised schools or centres for education established or maintained by the committee,

(d) 2 members elected by the members of the staff of the committee, and

(e) 4 members appointed by the council of the county, being a vocational education area, or by the council of the county,  being or including a county education area, as may be appropriate, after consultation with person elected underparagraphs (a), (b), (c) and (d), from among persons nominated by such bodies as, in the opinion of the council concerned, are representative of-

(i)    students,

(ii)    any class of trustees of community colleges maintained by the vocational  education committee concerned,

(iii)    members of the staff of the vocational education committee (other than members of the staff belonging to the same class as members of staff as either of the members elected under paragraph (d),

(iv)   voluntary organisations, community organisations or Irish language interests, or,

(v)    persons carrying on, in places within the vocational education area concerned, trades, professions or commercial or industrial activities.

Functions of VEC

• Reserved functions for Vocational Education Committee e.g. Acquisition of lands, powers of borrowing, suspension of officers, payment of expenses etc.
• Executive functions will be performed by C.E.O.
• Co-operation
• Co-operation between VECs in the context of sharing or expansion

Role of VEC

• To ensure the provision of Youth Work Services and Programmes in each VEC area by providing financial assistance to approved national voluntary youth work organisations.
• To monitor and assess the Youth Work programmes for which they provide monies.

In consultation with its Youth Work Committee, will prepare a Youth Work Development Plan every 3 years with special regard to the needs of disadvantaged youth.

The Bill provides for:

• The appointment of an assessor of Youth Work (national).
• E stablishment of a National Youth Work Advisory Committee (27-29 members)
• Establishment of a Youth Work Committee in each VEC (3 years term), (12-20 members) – nominees from VEC, FÁS, Health Boards, Gardai and Local Government.
• Voluntary Youth Council (19-20 members) to advise VEC in relation to Youth Work Planning and to nominate representatives to the Youth Work Committee.
• The designation of Local Youth Work Organisations by VECs.
• The preparation and supervision of a Youth Work budget by the VEC.

Proposed objective – Lifelong Learning Strategy

The emergence of lifelong learning marks one of the most significant and potentially far-reaching developments in contemporary society.  The concept aims to deal with educational disadvantage amongst adults and to promote social inclusion.

• To put in place effective local structures responsible for coordination and development of strategies to promote life-long learning.
• Establishment of Local Adult Learning Board to promote a coordinated area-based approach to the delivery of Adult Education services.  This Board will be a statutory sub-committee of the VEC.
• Appointment of another Adult Education Officer to coordinate service and needs of Secondary, Community and Comprehensive Schools.
• To promote and support the development of Community Education provision
• To develop an effective system of basic education/literacy which can be availed of by adults who have difficulties with reading, writing and numeracy.