Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill: Impact assessment - RPC opinion (green-rated)
Regulatory Policy Committee opinion on the Department for Education’s impact assessment (IA) in respect of the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill.
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Details
The Bill makes provision about: the safeguarding and welfare of children; support for children in, or leaving, care; regulation of care workers, and of establishments and agencies under Part 2 of the Care Standards Act 2000; employment of children; breakfast club provision and school uniform; attendance of children at school; regulation of independent educational institutions; inspections of schools and colleges; teacher misconduct; academies and teachers at academies; school places and admissions; establishing new schools; and repealing section 128 of the Education Act 2002.
The Department has defined six measures in the Bill as regulatory provisions, as these relate to business activity, in line with the definition of a regulatory provision in the Better Regulation Framework guidance. The RPC opinion focused its scrutiny on these.
The regulatory provisions present a varying range of options in the individual IAs, including do-minimum, non-regulatory and other viable alternative options. The summary IA estimates that the implementation of the regulatory provisions arising from primary and related secondary legislation will result in a total equivalent annual net direct cost to business of £1 million, with a net present social value of -£47 million. These impacts include familiarisation costs, administrative costs and reporting costs, which will be borne by independent schools, online educational providers and businesses in the children’s social care sector. The IAs provide a sufficient SaMBA as there are minimal burdens faced by business as a result of the regulation, and exemption would run contrary to the safeguarding objectives of the measures. Full details can be found in the opinion’s annex.
The relevant impact assessment can be found here.