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New rules good for children, parents and the teaching profession

The Minister for Education, Richard Bruton, has today commenced the Fitness to Teach provisions of the Teaching Council Acts 2001-2015.

This means that for the first time, any person, including a member of the public, an employer or a teacher will be able to make a complaint to the Teaching Council about a registered teacher. Complaints will be possible under a number of headings, including professional misconduct or poor professional performance.

Making the announcement, Minister Bruton said that this transparent process will provide assurance to the public, including parents, students and other teachers and affirm confidence in the teaching profession in the long run. 'We are fortunate in Ireland to have such a professional and dedicated teaching profession in Ireland. The introduction of Fitness to Teach will be good for the teaching profession'.

The Teaching Council’s fitness to teach processes are not intended to replace the procedures that are already in place in schools to deal with issues of professional conduct and competence. Underperformance or misconduct will continue to be dealt with first at school level and while generally school procedures should be exhausted before any inquiry by the Teaching Council takes place the Council can proceed where there are good and sufficient reasons.

Today’s announcement follows the Minister’s announcement last Thursday that the Government was supporting a Bill proposed by Jim Daly TD to improve information and complaint procedures for parents relating to schools and board of management, as well as the publication of the Admissions Bill to reform information and procedures around the process of school enrolment.

Today’s announcement fulfils a key commitment in the Programme for Government.

Speaking at the announcement, the Minister said:

“At the heart of what the Government is trying to achieve is to use our economic success to make life a little easier for people. We are fortunate in Ireland to have such a dedicated and committed teaching profession. Teachers perform a vital role in educating our children and make such an important contribution to the life of our state.

“To build on the high professional standards that exist it is important that we seek ways in which to continually improve. Part of being a member of any modern profession is that the public can be assured that when these high professional standards are not upheld, it is possible for a citizen to seek redress by bringing their complaint forward and see it dealt with in a proper way. The introduction of Fitness to Teach is one way we can do this, and will help make the teaching profession more open and more accountable. It will support high professional standards amongst teachers in the interests of children and parents, and will enhance the reputation and status of the teaching profession.

“Today is a very important milestone. Fitness to Teach will allow parents and others who have a concern about a registered teacher to bring that concern to the Teaching Council for adjudication for the first time. This will give parents confidence that the high quality and standards of the teaching profession will be maintained. Each inquiry which is convened by the Teaching Council must be fair, transparent and effective.”

“The introduction of Fitness to Teach will not interfere in any way with the right of school leadership to take action to deal with particular situations that arise at school level.”

“Teachers will also be protected too under the new arrangements and with the exception of the less serious cases, sanctions can be appealed to the High Court.”

Also speaking at today’s announcement, the Director of the Teaching Council, Mr. Tomás Ó Ruairc, said that teaching affected the lives of every single person in our society in a way that no other profession does. “That’s why professional standards matter so much and why it’s vital that a formal mechanism exists to allow for the investigation of complaints. The Fitness to Teach complaints process, therefore, is about improving teaching, not punishing teachers”. He pointed out that the Fitness to Teach process “will be about reassuring the public and the profession as to the quality of teaching and learning that all learners can expect in our schools”.

Notes to editor:
Complaints under Fitness to Teach may ultimately proceed to an inquiry to be held by the Teaching Council. However, in order to reach this stage there will be several steps designed to exclude less serious complaints from a full inquiry including initial screening and, subsequently, consideration of the case by the Council’s investigating Committee. Inquiries will be held in public, unless the Council is satisfied it is appropriate to hold a hearing, or part of a hearing, in private.

At the conclusion of an inquiry the Council may find that there is no case to answer. Alternatively there is a range of sanctions available ranging from the teacher’s removal from the register (and consequently removing the ability to be paid in a state funded teaching post) to the provision of advice to the teacher.

Other than where the lowest level of sanction has been applied, the teacher may apply to the High Court for an annulment of the Council’s decision.