THE EDUCATION BILL OF 1906 AS AMENDED IN THE COMMONS. THE BILL AS AMENDED SUMMARISED, TOGETHER WITH THE TEXT OF THE AMENDED BILL AND COMMENTS. PUBLISHED BY THE LIBERAL PUBLICATION DEPARTMENT (In connection with the National Liberal Federation and the Liberal Central Association), 42, PARLIAMENT STREET, LONDON, S.W. 1906. PRICE ONE PENNY. THE EDUCATION BILL, 1906. Bill introduced in House of Commons, April 9th, 1906. Read a second time, by 410 to 204 (majority 206), May 10th, 1906. Read a third time, by 369 to 177 (majority 192), and sent to the Lords, July 30th, 1906. Read there a second time, August 3rd, 1906. [N.B.-The Bill does not apply to Scotland or Ireland.] I. SUMMARY OF MAIN PROVISIONS OF THE BILL AS IT LEFT THE COMMONS. [It should be noted that the numbers of all the clauses-except the first four-differ from what they were in the Bill as introduced.] ALL SCHOOLS TO BE "PROVIDED" SCHOOLS. From January 1st, 1908, all schools recognised (and therefore maintained) by the local education authority must be "provided " schools [1]. At present a school may be either (a) " provided" (an old Board school or a newly erected Council school), or (b) “nonprovided "-i.e., a voluntary school to which the Cowper-Temple Clause (forbidding denominational instruction) does not apply. Transfer of Existing Voluntary Schools. The local education authority is empowered to obtain the use of the school-house of any existing voluntary school by arrangement with the owners of the school-house [2 (1)], who, when they are charitable trustees, are in turn empowered to enter into such an arrangement notwithstanding their trusts [2 (2)]. When charitable trustees refuse to make an arrangement with the authority, the latter may apply to a Commission of three [10] to make a scheme as to the mode in which effect is to be given to the trusts of the school-house [9 (1)]. The three Commissioners appointed by the Act are Sir Arthur Wilson, K.C.I.E., Sir Hugh Owen, G.C.B., and Mr. Worsley-Taylor, K.C. [10 (1)]. Such a scheme is to be framed on the legal principles applicable in such a case [9 (2)]. If the Commission is of opinion that the use of the school-house for a provided school is the best mode of giving effect to the trusts, they may make a scheme to that end, and the rent to be paid by the authority is to be settled after regard has been paid to:— (1) grants, if any, received from public funds towards the building, enlargement, improvement, or fitting-up of the schoolhouse; (2) the fact that the authority will only require the schoolhouse on five days of the week; (3) the facilities given therein for special religious instruction in accordance with the original trusts (see below); (4) the fact that the authority will bear the cost of maintenance and repair; and such other circumstances as may properly be considered [9 (2) (6)]. If the trustees refuse to make an arrangement on the ground that they propose themselves to carry on an elementary school, they must guarantee to do so effectively for at least five years [9 (2) (a)]. The authority is in certain cases empowered to make temporary use of voluntary school buildings [11] and there is a temporary restriction on the closing of voluntary schools [12]. The object of these two clauses is to ensure continuity in education in case the voluntary schools are not transferred in time, or are attempted to be closed in order to block the working of the Act. RELIGIOUS INSTRUCTION IN NEW PROVIDED SCHOOLS. [N.B.-"New Provided"="transferred existing Voluntary."] (A) Ordinary Facilities. In a new provided school it may be a part of the arrangement of transference that the denomination to which the school-house belongs may provide denominational teaching to those children whose parents desire such teaching on not more than two mornings a week, and the mornings fixed by the authority shall be the same for all the children unless this is made difficult by either the size of the school or the number of classes in it [3 (1)]. The cost of this denominational teaching cannot be paid by the authority [3 (2)]; and the teaching cannot be given by the teachers [8 (1)]. In a new provided school the authority may provide religious instruction of the Cowper-Temple type on any or all days. (B) Extended Facilities. In the case of extended facilities for denominational teaching (designed to meet the case where there is a great mass of children whose parents desire this special denominational teaching) the only religious instruction on any or every day of the week will be that of the denomination [4 (1)], and here the teachers may, if the local authority give permission, be paid by the denominationalists to give the religious instruction [4 (1)]. Extended facilities can only be given to a school in a borough or urban district with a population of at least 5,000 [4 (3)]. An application for "extended facilities may be made by the parents of at least 20 children attending the school, but can only be entertained by a local education authority if it appears as the result of a ballot that the parents of not less than four-fifths of the children attending the school desire these facilities [4 (1)]. It is laid down that accommodation must exist in other schools without extended facilities for the children of parents not desiring the facilities, but such accommodation need not be provided for the children of a parent not desiring it and not having voted at the ballot. No rent is to be paid by the authority for a school-house in respect of which extended facilities are granted [4 (1)]. A permission for extended facilities can only be granted or withdrawn after public local inquiry [4 (1) and (2)]. An application may be made for extended facilities to take effect in the event of transference of the school to the authority [4 (4)]. If a local authority decline, after inquiry, to grant extended facilities, an appeal lies to the Board of Education [5 (1)]. In that appeal the Board of Education may do one of three things: (a) Confirm the action of the local authority in refusing the facilities; (b) Reverse the decision of the authority, and order that authority to grant facilities, it being then the authority's "duty" to give the facilities; or (c) Permit, in exceptional circumstances, the school to be a State-aided school-i.e., to get the Government grants out of taxes, but to receive nothing from the rates. (In |