Qualifications and Quality Assurance (Education and Training) (Amendment) Act 2019

Amendment of section 84 of Principal Act (Transitional and savings provision for the Qualifications (Education and Training) Act 1999)

35. Section 84 of the Principal Act is amended—

(a) in subsection (1), by the substitution of “Subject to subsections (1A) and (1B), where” for “Where”,

(b) by the insertion of the following subsections after subsection (1):

“(1A) The provision made by subsection (1) for the continuance in force of the procedures referred to in that subsection shall, in relation to the procedures subsequently mentioned in this subsection, cease to apply (and, accordingly, those procedures shall no longer be taken to be in force as if they had been established under section 28) in either—

(a) the following circumstances—

(i) a period of 3 years from the commencement of section 35 of the Qualifications and Quality Assurance (Education and Training) (Amendment) Act 2019 has expired, and

(ii) the relevant provider concerned has not, within that period, submitted a copy of the procedures to the Authority for approval under section 30,

or

(b) the following circumstances—

(i) the relevant provider concerned has, within the foregoing period, done that which is referred to in paragraph (a)(ii), and

(ii) either—

(I) the Authority refuses to approve under section 30 the procedures submitted to it and the period prescribed under section 70 for lodging with the Appeals Panel, in accordance with section 69, an appeal against that refusal has expired without such an appeal being so lodged, or

(II) the Authority refuses to approve under section 30 the procedures submitted to it, an appeal against that refusal has, in accordance with section 69, been lodged with the Appeals Panel within the period so prescribed and an Appeals Board either affirms the decision of the Authority or directs it to reconsider its decision and, in the latter case, the Authority, on such reconsideration, again refuses to approve under section 30 the procedures submitted to it.

(1B) The provisions of section 30 shall apply to a copy of procedures submitted to the Authority, as mentioned in subsection (1A), as they apply to a draft of proposed procedures referred to in subsection (1) of section 30 that is submitted to the Authority.”,

(c) in subsection (4), by the substitution of “Subject to subsections (4A) to (4C), where” for “Where”, and

(d) by the insertion of the following subsection after subsection (4):

“(4A) On the making of a determination by the Authority under subsection (4B), subsection (4)(a) shall continue to have effect in relation to a programme of education and training for the period that is specified in the determination and, subject to subsections (4B) and (4C), for no longer (and, accordingly, that programme shall, subject to those subsections, no longer be taken to be validated by the Authority under section 45 on the expiry of such period).

(4B) For the purpose of limiting, subsequent to the commencement of section 35 of the Qualifications and Quality Assurance (Education and Training) (Amendment) Act 2019, the continued effect of subsection (4)(a) in relation to a programme of education and training, the Authority shall, on or after that commencement, determine the period (being a period that shall be specified in the determination and expressed to begin on the making of the determination) for which subsection (4)(a) shall continue to have effect in relation to a programme of education and training, but subsection (4C) applies so as to provide that, in the circumstances specified in that subsection and in relation to the learner there referred to, a programme of education and training shall, for the purposes of this Act, be deemed to be validated notwithstanding the fact that the foregoing period has expired.

(4C) In circumstances in which a learner—

(a) is enrolled on a programme of education and training before the expiry of the period specified, in a determination under subsection (4B), with respect to that programme, and

(b) completes, in accordance with its terms, that programme after that expiry,

that programme shall, in relation to that learner, be deemed to be validated for the purposes of this Act notwithstanding the expiry of the period so specified.”.