Education Act - Section 29

Section 29 Appeals

Section 29 of the Education Act 1998 allows parents of pupils affected by a refusal to enrol/suspension/expulsion decision of a Board of Management to appeal that decision to the Secretary General of the Department of Education.  

• Link to the text of Section 29
  

Three High Court judgements have been made in respect of judicial review proceedings taken by schools against decisions that have been made by Section 29 committees.  

The Minister for Education and Science has lodged an appeal against one of these judgements to the Supreme Court.  

In the meantime the Department of Education and Science has written to the INTO stating that pending the outcome of this appeal, the role of a Section 29 Committee is confined to reviewing whether a school Board of Management applied its own policies correctly and lawfully and in a reasonable and rational manner.

Revised documentation for Section 29 appeals, including a new information note for parents, has now been posted on the DES website.