Children's Commissioner for England

(asked on 12th July 2022) - View Source

Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will publish the agreement which his Department has made with the Children's Commissioner for England allowing her to take up a director position on the School-Led Development Trust, which is funded by his Department; and if he will make a statement on the arrangements in place to ensure that the Children's Commissioner for England maintains independence from (a) Government and (b) organisations outside Government.


Answered by
Will Quince Portrait
Will Quince
This question was answered on 25th July 2022

The Children’s Commissioner’s role, functions, powers, and independence are set out in the Children Act 2004. Pursuant to Schedule 1 of the Children Act 2004, the Children’s Commissioner for England is a Corporate Sole and, therefore, independent from government and not to be regarded as the servant or agent of the Crown.

The School-Led Development Trust (SLDT) is running the National Institute of Teaching under contract to the department. SLDT is currently a private limited company seeking independent charitable status and, as such, it is responsible for their own recruitment processes for staff and trustees.

The Children’s Commissioner has declared her role as Trustee of SLDT on the Office of Children’s Commissioner website under its register of interests.

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