SEND guidance for school governing boards
Early last month, the DfE published updated SEND guidance for school governing boards titled “Special educational needs (SEN) and disabilities:…
Independent Schools
Hewston v Ofsted – the importance of clear policies and procedures
The case of Hewston v Ofsted serves as a pivotal reminder of the importance of well-defined policies and procedures within…
Prosecution of school following death of Owen Garnett
The tragic death of 19-year-old Owen Garnett at Welcombe Hills School in Stratford-upon-Avon has cast a spotlight on the critical…
School employee’s dismissal for gender critical Facebook posts was discriminatory
The Court of Appeal has upheld a Christian employee’s appeal that she was directly discriminated against on the ground of…
Amendments to the employment rights bill: what we know so far
In fulfilment of its election promise to “Make Work Pay” the Government is introducing significant changes to employment law. Following…
Are you ready for VAT on school fees?
A lot of media attention has, quite rightly, been given to the impact on families of the legislation that will…
Teacher banned for deliberately misgendering a transgender pupil
Sutcliffe v Secretary of State for Education – Teaching ban upheld for teacher who deliberately misgendered a transgender pupil and…
What does the Employment Rights Bill mean for schools?
The Labour Party promised to introduce legislation within 100 days of forming a government to implement Labour’s Plan to Make…
Teacher brought profession into disrepute
A teacher who had not committed unacceptable professional misconduct still brought profession into disrepute.
This case involved Mrs Aquilina, a…
Prevent sexual harassment in the workplace
How to prepare for the new duty to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace.
On 26 October 2024 the long…
Independent schools’ fees in advance schemes
One of the questions that has rumbled in the background of the debate about VAT and school fees is whether…
DfE publishes updated version of Keeping Children Safe in Education
The DfE has now released its annual draft update to Keeping Children Safe in Education (KCSIE), with the changes set…
Oxford based teacher is banned from teaching
Dr Esther Garcia Rodriguez, an Oxford based teacher is banned from teaching. She was a science teacher at the Oxford…
Can schools ban prayer rituals?
In the recent judgment in R (TTT) v Michaela Community Schools Trust, the main question was, can schools ban prayer…
When can individual staff be liable for acts of discrimination?
In the recent case of Baldwin v Cleves School and others [2024] EAT 66 the Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) has…
Can a volunteer be a worker?
Can a volunteer be a worker in relation to the activities they personally perform?
The Employment Appeal Tribunal in the…
Amending a governing document
Earlier this month, the latest phase of the Charities Act 2022 was brought into force. This includes further harmonisation of…
Family friendly legislation – Upcoming changes to family leave
As 2024 gets well underway, we take a look at several employment law changes that come into effect this year.…
Heat of the moment resignations
The recent Employment Appeal Tribunal (the “EAT”) decision in the case of Omar v Epping Forest District Citizens Advice has…
Government draft code on ‘fire and re-hire’ updated
The Government published its updated draft Code of Practice on dismissal and re-engagement (colloquially known as ‘fire and re-hire’) on…
Are you ready for the new employment rates and limits?
With April 2024 approaching, it is important that schools ensure they are ready for the annual increases to the employment…
New holiday rules that apply to part-year and irregular hours workers
The Employment Rights (Amendment, Revocation and Transitional Provision) Regulations 2023 (the Regulations), which were published at the end of last…
Draft transgender guidance for schools – the key points explained
This long awaited and delayed government draft transgender guidance for schools was finally published on 19 December 2023. It’s called…
Gender critical social media posts by school employees
The recent case of Higgs v Farmor’s School considered social media posts by school employees, in this case by Mrs Higgs who…
To stay or leave the Teachers’ Pension Scheme
To stay or leave the Teachers’ Pension Scheme as employer contribution rate rise to 28.6%
Recently, the Government announced a…
Updated guidance on managing sick leave in school
Schools should be aware of the recent guidance issued to help employers in managing sick leave in school, particularly as…
Teacher wins his claim for unfair dismissal
In the recent case of Mr J Hawker v Devonport High School for Girls, Mr Hawker won his claim for…
Ensuring an accessible recruitment process for individuals with disabilities
The recent Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) decision in the case of AECOM Ltd v Mallon should serve as a warning…
School not vicariously liable for sexual assault on a pupil
In MXX v A Secondary School (the School), the Court of Appeal has held that the School was not vicariously…
Joey Johnson
About Joey
I am a trainee solicitor currently placed in the Schools and charities team where I will support other…
How should schools handle transgender issues in the absence of long-awaited government guidance?
Long-awaited government guidance for single sex schools on transgender issues has been trailed over recent months. This guidance was expected…
Government announced measures to combat the increase in children vaping
Schools have noticed a significant increase in children vaping on school premises.
This has been concern among schools and parents…
DfE publishes updated guidance on action plans for independent schools
We are aware of a recent increase in the number of independent schools failing ISI inspections, with a growing trend…
Charity Commission updates its guidance on internal financial controls
The Charity Commission’s guidance note on Internal Financial Controls (CC8) is relevant for all schools that are registered charities. The…
New guidance from ACAS on reasonable adjustments for mental health
ACAS has recently published new guidance on making reasonable adjustments for mental health. The link to the ACAS guidance is here.…
School chaplain’s claim for religious discrimination is rejected
In the recent case of Randall v Trent College Ltd and others ET/2600288/2020, an employment tribunal rejected a school chaplain’s claim for belief or religion…
VAT and fees in advance schemes
A look at Labour’s proposals for VAT and fees in advance schemes, on school fees and what schools can do…
Teacher banned from profession after misgendering pupil
A professional misconduct panel of The Teaching Regulation Agency (TRA) has prohibited a maths teacher, Mr Joshua Sutcliffe, from teaching…
Paul Ridout
About Paul
As a highly experienced solicitor in Moore Barlow’s Guildford office, I possess a wealth of expertise in the…
Deputy headteacher wins unfair dismissal claim
Deputy headteacher wins unfair dismissal claim against school who dismissed him for gross misconduct – Kitchener v The Thinking Schools…
Employment Appeal Tribunal finds term time only worker’s salary breached National Minimum Wage requirements
The Employment Appeal Tribunal recently delivered its decision in the case of Lloyd v Elmhurst School. Ms Lloyd was employed…
Bereavement in schools
There is a new petition to add content on death, dying and bereavement to the national curriculum which has now…
Safeguarding and social media in schools
Many parents looked to schools for help when Andrew Tate’s profile blew up on social media which spread dangerous and…
Employment rates and limits
Stay updated with the rising employment rates and limits.
As April 2023 approaches, schools should ensure they are ready for…
Update on the Charities Act 2022
The majority of independent schools in England are registered charities, which means that they need to comply with charity law…
Linzi Bandtock
About Linzi
I am solicitor in the Real estate disputes team.
I gain valuable experience working within a range of…
Government consultation launched on holiday entitlement for part-year workers
In July 2022, the Supreme Court issued its long-awaited judgment in the case of Harpur Trust v Brazel. Mrs Brazel…
Harpur Trust and holiday pay for part-year workers – what have we learned so far?
Since the issuing of the Supreme Court’s decision in the Harpur Trust v Brazel case on holiday entitlement and pay…
New guidance on preventing hair discrimination in schools
The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) published guidance in October stating that preventing school pupils from wearing their hair…
Behaviour in schools guidance – what should schools be doing now?
The Department for Education has recently issued updated “Behaviour in schools” guidance. Importantly, this updated guidance now explicitly states that…
What does the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse report mean for independent schools?
The Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA) released its long-awaited final report on 20 October 2022. It sets out…
Risks to tax reliefs for independent schools: could charitable foundations be the answer?
At the 2022 Labour Party Conference, Shadow Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson repeated Labour’s plans to “end the tax breaks private…
Grace Miller
About Grace
I am a solicitor in the Schools & Charities team.
I assist clients with matters including formation of…
Cerys Cousins
About Cerys
I joined Moore Barlow as a trainee solicitor in September 2022, and qualified as a solicitor the Schools…
How to choose the right private school for your children
When it comes to giving your child the best start in life, choosing the best school to suit their individual…
Changes to holiday pay for term time only staff following the Supreme Court’s decision in Harpur Trust v Brazel
Almost three years after the Court of Appeal found in favour of Mrs Brazel in her claim against her employer,…
Exploring the proposed changes to Keeping children safe in education (KCSIE)
In January, the Department for Education put forward its proposed amendments for this September’s update to Keeping children safe in…
Teacher loses claim for assault by pupil
The Court of Appeal has recently made its decision in the case of Cunningham v Rochdale Metropolitan Borough Council where…
Can a teacher be dismissed for sending affectionate emails?
The events brought to light in a recent claim for unfair dismissal and sex discrimination from the former Assistant Director…
Safeguarding for faith-based organisations
Safeguarding has never been more high profile and a wave of recent reports and inquiries have led to an intense…
Are you complying with the latest allergies legislation?
1 October 2021 saw “Natasha’s Law” come into effect. “Natasha’s Law” was passed in 2019 following the tragic death of…
Covid-19 vaccination rollout causes disruption at schools
At the start of this term schools were presented with a fresh challenge arising from the Covid 19 pandemic –…
Belief that biological sex is immutable is protected under the Equality Act
The Employment Appeal Tribunal has held that a belief that biological sex is immutable is protected as a philosophical belief…
Webinar: Everyone’s Invited: peer-on-peer abuse
The Everyone’s Invited movement is but the latest spotlight to fall on safeguarding in schools.
The list of allegations seems…
Webinar: Independent schools – Strategic planning for the challenges of 2021
After one of the most challenging years in recent memory, strategic planning for the year to come has never been…
New Corporate Insolvency and Governance Act 2020: an extension of support and relaxing of rules for schools
Schools have not been isolated from the financial and social effect of the pandemic. In many cases, they are seeing…
Centre Assessed Grades: it’s not too soon to start thinking about next summer’s exams
One of the many additional challenges presented to schools as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic was the requirement for…
The Government’s crackdown on furlough fraud
When schools were forced to close in March, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, many schools chose to make use of…
Difficult decisions in difficult times: how should schools approach managing redundancies?
The last seven months have been some of the hardest ever faced by the independent schools sector. Whilst the Government’s Job…
The Job Support Scheme – how does it work and can schools benefit from it?
The Government has been under increasing pressure to extend the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme which will cease providing support to…
Teachers’ pensions: returning to the fray
Whilst most of the attention recently has understandably been on the COVID-19 crisis, the past few months have seen a…
Helen Harvie
About Helen
I am a charity law specialist and I act as both trustee and advisor to a wide range…
Olivia Stanton
About Olivia
I am an associate solicitor in the independent schools and charities team and I specialise in employment and…
Adam McRae-Taylor
About Adam
I specialise in employment and education law and advise on issues such as unfair dismissal, discrimination cases, safeguarding,…
Esther Millard
About Esther
I specialise in handling professional negligence claims on behalf of both businesses and individuals. I have particular and…
Gordon Reid
About Gordon
I lead the charities team. I work with charities and independent schools of all shapes and sizes, advising…
George Shepherd
About George
I am a Senior associate solicitor in the schools and charities team, specialising in governance and transactional work…
Joanna Lada-Walicki
About Joanna
I head the firm’s independent schools and charities practice and I specialise in education and employment law. I…
Ben Collingwood
About Ben
I specialise in advising independent schools and other charities on wide ranging areas of education law, with particular…
Immigration for schools update: sponsored students affected by Coronavirus
The Home Office has released updated guidance to deal with individuals affected by travel restrictions associated with coronavirus (COVID-19).
Tier…
The Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA) – An update
Conclusion of Phase 1 of the residential schools investigation
The Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (IICSA) was set up…
Vegetarianism is not a Protected Characteristic
The Employment Tribunal (“the ET”) has recently handed down judgment in the case of Conisbee v Crossley that vegetarianism is not a…
Preventing Charity fraud – new Charity Commission guidance
The Charity Commission has recently issues important new guidance on preventing charity fraud which should be incorporated by all schools…
Teachers’ Pension Scheme (TPS) Update – recent developments
The past few months have seen a number of developments regarding the on-going impact of increases in employer contributions to…
SEN exclusions – the Tribunal’s power to revoke discriminatory exclusions
Last year we reported on the case of C and C –v- Governing Body of a School and Others which changed the…
Department for Education publishes draft Relationships and Sex Education statutory guidance
The Government has recently conducted a consultation on Relationships and Sex Education in schools in England and produced new draft…
Can a direct discrimination claim be based on the employer’s religion or belief?
In Gan Menachem Hendon Limited v De Groen the Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) considered whether an employee could bring a claim for…
GDPR and safeguarding in schools: what you need to know
The General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”), which came into force on the 25 May, needs no introduction. You probably know…
Salary sacrifice school fees – last chance saloon!
Hitherto, independent schools have been able to offer staff the opportunity to save some of the cost of the school…