I am chairperson of the third Teaching Council which was recently elected and appointed. The Teaching Council welcomes the opportunity to make a presentation to the joint committee on the operation of the Teaching Council Act. We understand the context of its invitation is the concerns raised by the Ombudsman for Children when she attended a recent meeting of the committee regarding the delay in commencing Part 5 of the Teaching Council Act 2001.
Before briefing the joint committee on the Act, I will provide a brief summary of the roles and functions of the Teaching Council. The council is the professional and regulatory body for teaching in Ireland. Its remit covers all State paid primary and post-primary teachers and some teachers in the further education sector. The council which has in excess of 73,000 teachers on the register was established in 2006 under the Teaching Council Act 2001. Its overall remit is similar to that of professional bodies such as the Medical Council for doctors and An Bord Altranais for nurses and its functions are as follows: maintaining a register of teachers; setting professional standards for entry to teaching; accrediting teacher education programmes; continuing professional development of teachers; putting in place a code of professional conduct; and dealing with complaints about teachers in accordance with its fitness to teach procedures.
The functions of the Teaching Council that have not yet been commenced by the Minister for Education and Skills include the following: the requirement for all teachers paid from State funding to be registered with the council; the council's powers to set procedures and criteria for the induction and probation of newly qualified teachers; the setting of standards for teachers' continuing professional development; and the council's powers to investigate complaints about a registered teacher's fitness to teach.
The Minister for Education and Skills, Deputy Ruairí Quinn, has confirmed to the council that he plans to commence the functions related to the induction and probation of new teachers in September. Similarly, he has signalled his intention to commence section 30 of the Teaching Council Act which will make it a requirement for teachers in receipt of a salary from Exchequer funds to be registered with the council in the early stages of the 2012-13 school year. It is the Minister's expectation that Part 5 of the Act which deals with the investigation of complaints regarding the fitness to teach of registered teachers will be commenced shortly thereafter, possibly in early 2013. The final major function assigned to the council, namely, continued professional development of teachers, is expected to be commenced within the term of office of the current council which comes to an end in March 2016.
The Teaching Council is a self-funding body and is not in receipt of any State funding. The council's main source of income is through annual registration fees paid by teachers. The annual fee of €90 was set in 2008 in the expectation that the council's wide range of statutory functions and associated costs would be commenced shortly thereafter. This has turned out not to be the case, and in this light, the council has reduced the annual fee to €65 from 2013 onwards. As I have said previously, the Minister has given clear indications of his intention to move on the outstanding sections, including Part 5, in the near future.
I will turn to the Ombudsman's concerns regarding the delays in implementing Part 5 of the Teaching Council Act and give a brief explanation of what is involved. By virtue of being on the register, a teacher is subject to the council's code of professional conduct. The first code was published by the council in 2007 and is still in force. A revised version of the code is at an advanced stage of preparation following a lengthy consultation process, and it is the council's aim to publish this document in September 2012. The purpose of the code is to provide a guide to teachers to aid them in steering an ethical and respectful course through their career in teaching, and to uphold the honour and dignity of the teaching profession. The updated code deals with professional matters concerning values and relationships, integrity, conduct, practice, professional development and collegiality.
The code of professional conduct has a specific legal standing under the Teaching Council Act and can be used as a point of reference for determining professional misconduct when the council exercises its powers under Part 5 of the Act when inquiring into the alleged unfitness to teach of a registered teacher. Part 5 of the Teaching Council Act sets out the Council's role and powers when investigating complaints as to the fitness to teach of a registered teacher. This role is very similar to the fitness to practice role exercised by the Medical Council and An Bord Altranais, that is to say, the investigation of complaints against registered professionals and referral where appropriate to a disciplinary panel. The council's powers have not yet been commenced by the Minister for Education and Skills. It has been the council's view that section 30 of the Act, which requires that all State paid teachers are on the register and subject to the code of professional conduct, should precede the commencement of Part 5. The commencement of section 30 has, unfortunately, been delayed for some time. However, as stated previously, the current Minister has confirmed his intention to have section 30 in place early in the coming school year, with Part 5 to follow shortly thereafter.
Any person, including the Teaching Council itself, may make an application for inquiry as to the fitness to teach of a registered teacher. Such a complaint or application for inquiry can relate, among other things, to professional misconduct, medical unfitness and contravening named legislation. These are named in the Act. When a complaint is made, it is reviewed by the council director to ensure it meets the statutory requirements for a complaint, for example, that it is in writing, that it is signed, and that it is not of a frivolous or vexatious nature. The complaint is then forwarded to the investigating committee which is required to establish it is valid in the first instance and which will then proceed to investigate the complaint. If the investigating committee is satisfied a case exists, the complaint will be forwarded to the disciplinary committee and a formal inquiry hearing will be held.
If a finding of unfitness to teach is made against the teacher, the disciplinary committee can decide to remove or suspend the teacher from the register, which in effect means the teacher cannot teach in a State funded teaching position, or the committee can set down a requirement such as the teacher seeking professional assistance or support of a specified nature. The teacher can appeal the council's decision to the High Court. Where no appeal is entered, the council is required to seek the approval of the High Court for its decision.
An important caveat to the investigating committee's decision to proceed with an investigation is the statutory requirement that local school procedures under section 24 of the Education Act 1998, dealing with disciplinary procedures, and section 28 of that Act, dealing with grievance and other procedures, be exhausted prior to commencing an investigation. The investigating committee can override this requirement if it believes there are good and sufficient reasons. It is clear from this approach, however, that the intent of the legislation is that procedures at local school level should be utilised where possible.
In her submission to the joint committee, the Ombudsman drew attention to the fact that section 28 of the Education Act 1998 had not been activated. Section 28 specifically gives the Minister powers to prescribe grievance and other procedures for use in schools. The council shares the view of the Ombudsman in supporting the availability of local mechanisms for dealing with difficulties, grievances and complaints. To this end the council intends to write to the Minister shortly, conveying its recommendation that procedures under section 28 would be put in place without delay.
The joint committee should also be aware that the council also administers the vetting of teachers by the Garda central vetting unit. Currently, 30,500 registered teachers have been vetted, with 42,600 teachers not yet vetted. Discussions have been held with the various stakeholders to speed up the vetting of all teachers.
The council is committed to playing its part in setting professional standards and the proper regulation of teaching. The council is hampered by a lack of staff as it is included within the public service moratorium on recruitment and the employment control framework. The council is self-funding, so it does not draw on the public purse. If the council is to proceed with implementing Part 5 of the Act and the other uncommenced functions, it will require an appropriate level of suitably qualified staff. The Minister and the Department for Education and Skills are fully supportive of the council's case for additional staffing. We await a response from the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform.
I thank the Chairman and members for the opportunity to present to the joint committee. We would be happy to deal with any questions.