Right to education 

Full-time education in Wales is compulsory for all children between the ages of 5 and 16. Under Section 7 of the Education Act 1996: 

‘The parent of every child of compulsory school age shall cause him to receive efficient full-time education suitable -

 a. to his age, ability and aptitude, and

 b. to any special educational needs he may have, either by regular attendance at school or otherwise.’

Parents have the right to educate their children at home (known as ‘elective home education’, or EHE). See ‘Home education’ in the article ‘Organisation of the Education System and of its Structure’.

Individual rights 

The Human Rights Act 1998 gives individuals in the UK a clear legal statement of their basic rights and fundamental freedoms. With regard to education, the Act gives everyone the right to an effective education. Parents also have the right to ensure that their religious and philosophical beliefs are respected in their children's education.

Both the General Data Protection Regulation (EU) 2016/679 (GDPR) and the Data Protection Act 2018 control how personal data is processed and used by organisations, businesses and government. While the GDPR is a regulation of the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union, the Data Protection Act updates data protection laws in the UK and extends these laws to areas which are not covered by the GDPR. The Freedom of Information Act 2000 gives individuals the right to access recorded information held by public sector organisations, including maintained schools and local authorities.

Equality legislation 

All public bodies are bound by the Equality Act 2010, which harmonises and extends previous equality legislation and seeks to protect the rights of individuals and advance equality of opportunity for all. The Act applies to local authorities both in their role as education providers and in their role as employers, requiring them to eliminate discrimination and foster good relations between individuals who share a protected characteristic and those who do not. Under the Act, the following are ‘protected characteristics’, or the categories to which the law applies:

• age
• disability
• gender reassignment
• marriage and civil partnership
• pregnancy and maternity
• race
• religion or belief
• sex
• sexual orientation.

Further information on the Act and its provisions is available on the Government Equalities Office website.

Legislation (the Education Act 1996 and the Additional Learning Needs and Education Tribunal (Wales) Act 2018) places an emphasis on educating children and young people with additional learning needs (ALN) alongside their peers in mainstream schools, wherever possible.

For more information on how this legislation applies to education bodies, see the Chapter on ‘Educational Support and Guidance’.

Prevention of extremism 

The Prevent Duty, introduced under the Counter-Terrorism and Security Act 2015, requires specified authorities, which include, but are not limited to, organisations within the education sector in Wales,  England and Scotland, to have due regard to the need to prevent people from being drawn into terrorism. Separate guidance for schools and childcare providers, further education institutions and higher education institutions has been issued by the Home Office in relation to the Prevent Duty.

Education policy priorities 

Education forms part of the ‘Ambitious and Learning’ strand of the current Programme for Government in Wales, Taking Wales Forward, which sets out the Welsh Government’s policy priorities for 2016 to 2021. With regard to education, it aims to:

• give every child the best start in life
• ensure looked after children enjoy the same life chances as other children
• improve school standards and close the attainment gap
• raise school workforce standards
• promote digital inclusion and competence
• enhance links between further and higher education and industry.

In addition, the 2017 education action plan for Wales, Education in Wales: Our national mission 2017-21, outlines the Welsh Government’s priorities for the development of the school system. These include:

• introducing a new curriculum
• reducing class sizes
• investing in an upgrade of school buildings
• reforming teacher training and establishing a national approach to career development for teachers
• reducing unnecessary bureaucracy for teachers
• strengthening support for learners with additional learning needs (ALN).

See the Chapter on ‘Ongoing Reforms and Policy Developments’ for further information on current education policy priorities, and an overview of priorities related to specific phases of education.

Article last reviewed December 2020.