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EA board tackles suspensions at first meeting

The first sitting of the Education Authority in Belfast yesterday Picture Mal McCann.
The first sitting of the Education Authority in Belfast yesterday Picture Mal McCann. The first sitting of the Education Authority in Belfast yesterday Picture Mal McCann.

State schools are to be asked to adopt a common approach to suspending and expelling pupils.

The creation of a single exclusions scheme featured on the agenda yesterday at the first meeting of the newly-formed Education Authority (EA).

The EA, which replaced the five education and library boards on April 1, was accepted as an alternative to the Education and Skills Authority (ESA) after rival parties failed to agree its establishment. The creation of the EA ensures education administration is compatible with the new 11 district council boundaries.

It will have a budget of approximately £1.5billion and will become the largest employer in the north, with more than 37,000 people, although most of these are teachers in the state-controlled sector.

Bodies including the Council for Catholic Maintained Schools (CCMS) and the Council for the Curriculum, Examinations and Assessment (CCEA) will remain. The CCMS will continue to employ close to 6,000 teachers.

The new EA board, which includes 20 members and a chairwoman, met for its first full meeting yesterday at the former Belfast Education and Library Board headquarters.

While much of the meeting was behind closed doors, the public session included discussions about teaching appointments, health and safety and a new EA scheme for the suspension and expulsion of pupils in controlled schools.

Of the 29 pupils expelled last year, just five attended controlled schools, and the sector would typically expel fewer young people than other sectors.

The five defunct boards, however, would have had slightly different approaches to disciplining pupils. The plan now is to bring forward a single, shared policy for all 550 controlled schools across the north.

Former chief executive of Derry City Council, Sharon O'Connor, has been appointed as the EA's first chairwoman. Welcoming members yesterday, she said it was a key goal of the EA to provide a system of education administration that served the needs of all young people, regardless of their background.

"We must be aspirational in setting our vision and we must be principled in stating our values. We must lead by example and nurture a culture of openness, lead with integrity and demonstrate absolute professionalism in all that we do," Ms O'Connor said.

"And let us not forget why we are here. Education can make a real difference to a child's life. It removes barriers, breaks down prejudices and improves their life chances in many other ways. Providing the best possible educational opportunities must always be our focus."

Former civil service chief Gerry Loughran and influential Catholic cleric Fr Tim Bartlett are among those chosen to serve on the board, which also includes former school principals Patricia Carville, Sr Chris Hegarty, Deirdre McDonald, Raymond Pollock and Andy McMorran.

Gavin Boyd, the former head of CCEA, has been appointed interim chief executive. It will be the responsibility of EA board to appoint a permanent chief.

"Our focus now is on transformation. We must move quickly to develop a range of regional services that are supported and delivered locally and that provide equality of access to excellent education services for all our young people," Mr Boyd said.