The Baker Clause
What is the Baker Clause?
Introduced as an amendment to the Technical and Further Education Act 2017, the Baker Clause stipulates that schools must allow colleges and training providers access to every student in years 8- 13 to discuss non-academic routes that are available to them (See Appendix A). It is expected that by doing so this will help address the UK’s productivity challenges and address skills shortages experienced across several sectors of the economy. This regulation has been enforced since January 2nd 2018.
The Department for Education’s Statutory guidance for governing bodies, school leaders and school staff sets out the expectations of schools which includes:
* Every school must ensure that there is an opportunity for a range of education and training providers to access all pupils in year 8 to year 13 for the purpose of informing them about approved technical education qualifications or apprenticeships.
* Every school must publish a policy statement setting out their arrangements for provider access and ensure that it is followed.
Policy Statement
This policy statement sets out Wellacre Academy’s arrangements for managing the access of providers to students at the Academy for the purposes of giving them information about the provider’s education or training offer.
This complies with the legal obligations under Section 42B of the Education act 1997 (the ‘Baker Clause’).
Student entitlement
Students in Years 8 – 11 are entitled to:
* find out about technical education qualifications and apprenticeships opportunities, as part of a careers programme which provides information on the full range of education and training options available at each transition point;
* hear from a range of local providers about the opportunities they offer, including technical education and apprenticeships – through options evening’s, assemblies and group discussions and taster events;
* understand how to make applications for the full range of academic and technical courses.
Management of Provider Access requests
Any provider who wishes to request access to the Academy should email:
Appendix
Appendix A: Education Act 1997 c. 44 Section 42B:
Information about technical education: access to English schools
(1) The proprietor of a school in England within subsection
(2) must ensure that there is an opportunity for a range of education and training providers to access registered pupils during the relevant phase of their education for the purpose of informing them about approved technical education qualifications or apprenticeships. (2) A school is within this subsection if it provides secondary education and is one of the following—
(a)an Academy;
(b)an alternative provision Academy;
(c)a community, foundation or voluntary school;
(d)a community or foundation special school (other than one established in a hospital);
(e)a pupil referral unit.
(3) The proprietor of a school in England within subsection (2) must prepare a policy statement setting out the circumstances in which education and training providers will be given access to registered pupils for the purpose of informing them about approved technical education qualifications or apprenticeships.
(4) The proprietor must ensure that the policy statement is followed.
(5) The policy statement must include—
(a)any procedural requirements in relation to requests for access;
(b)grounds for granting and refusing requests for access;
(c)details of premises or facilities to be provided to a person who is given access.
(6) The proprietor may revise the policy statement from time to time.
(7) The proprietor must publish the policy statement and any revised statement.
(8) The Secretary of State may by regulations make provision supplementing subsection (1), for example provision about who is to be given access to pupils, to which pupils they are to be given access and how and when.
(9) For the purposes of this section the relevant phase of a pupil's education is the period— (a)beginning at the same time as the school year in which the majority of pupils in the pupil's class attain the age of 13, and
(b)ending with the expiry of the school year in which the majority of pupils in the pupil's class attain the age of 18.
(10) In this section “approved technical education qualification” means a qualification approved under section A2DA of the Apprenticeships, Skills, Children and Learning Act 2009.
