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Appointment details

Teaching Regulation Agency Professional Conduct Panel - Teacher Panellist and Lay Panellist

Summary

• Organisation: Teacher Misconduct – Professional Conduct Panel Members
• Sponsor department: Department for Education
• Location: Various
• Sectors: Education
• Skills: Business, Legal, Judicial, Regulation, Casework and Complaints Handling
• Number of vacancies: 100
• Time commitment: Adhoc
• Length of term: Five years
• Application deadline: Midday on 2 December 2022

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Timeline for this appointment

1. Opening date

   3 November 2022

2. Application deadline

   Midday on 2 December 2022

3. Sifting date

   16 December 2022

4. Interviews expected to end on

   10 February 2023

Timeline dates are only an estimate and can change

About the appointment

Introduction

Under the Education Act 2002, as amended by the Education Act 2011, the Secretary of State for Education has responsibility to regulate teachers’ conduct and to hold a list of teachers who have been prohibited from teaching. The Teaching Regulation Agency (TRA) operates the regulatory system on her behalf and within the framework provided under the Teachers’ Disciplinary (England) Regulations 2012 and the Teachers’ Disciplinary (Amendment) (England) Regulations 2014. The purpose of this arrangement is to protect pupils, maintain public confidence in the teaching profession and uphold high standards of teacher conduct.

To carry out this function, teacher and lay panellists are appointed by the Secretary of State to sit on Professional Conduct Panels (Panels). The panels are convened to hear and consider only the most serious allegations against teachers and then to determine whether a recommendation for prohibition should be made to the Secretary of State.

Successful applicants will be required to sit as one of three panellists to consider allegations of serious misconduct referred to the Secretary of State by employers, the police, the Disclosure and Barring Service, other regulators, other interested organisations, and members of the public. The panel will consider the evidence and determine whether the facts in the case are proven and if it amounts to unacceptable professional conduct, conduct that brings the profession into disrepute and/or conviction of a relevant offence. The panel will make recommendations to the Secretary of State as to whether a teacher should be prohibited from teaching.

Appointment description

The role of professional conduct panellists.

Professional conduct panellists have three main duties and functions.

Firstly, to consider the evidence presented to the panel and reach a decision about whether the facts in the case are proved and whether this amounts to unacceptable professional conduct, conduct that brings the profession into disrepute and/or conviction of a relevant offence. The panel will then be required to consider whether to recommend to the Secretary of State that the teacher should be prohibited from teaching and, if so, whether it is appropriate to permit the teacher to have the prohibition order reviewed after a minimum period of at least two years. Panellists will also be involved in prehearings.

Secondly, to consider whether a teacher, who has previously been prohibited from teaching by the Secretary of State, should have their prohibition set aside and make appropriate recommendations to the Secretary of State.

Thirdly, to consider whether appeals from teachers against a decision by an Appropriate Body that they have not satisfactorily completed an induction period under the Education (Induction Arrangements for School Teachers) (England) Regulations 2012.

Person specification

Essential criteria

Applicants should have the ability to manage complex, sensitive and confidential information in a fair and balanced way to arrive at well judged, reasonable and sustainable decisions.

The ability to generate the trust, confidence, and respect of others and to deal impartially with all matters raised during hearings is also essential.

Application and selection process

How to apply

In order to apply you will need to request an application pack by email to TRA.RECRUITMENT@education.gov.uk

Please note these are unpaid, voluntary positions. Panellists will be eligible to claim expenses for travel and subsistence costs necessarily incurred while on panellist duty.

Advisory Assessment Panel (AAP)

Advisory Assessment Panels (AAP) are chosen by ministers to assist them in their decision-making. These include a departmental official and an independent member. For competitions recruiting non-executive members of a board (apart from the Chair), the panel will usually include a representative from the public body concerned.

AAP’s perform a number of functions, including agreeing an assessment strategy with ministers, undertaking sifting, carrying out interviews in line with the advertised criteria and deciding objectively who meets the published selection criteria for the role before recommending to ministers which candidates they find appointable. It is then for the minister to decide who to appoint to the role.

Eligibility criteria

Teacher Panellists - To be considered eligible for membership as a teacher panellist applicants must be currently employed or engaged as a teacher or have been employed or engaged as a teacher in the last five years in an education setting.

For the purposes of teacher regulation ‘teacher’ is defined as a person employed or engaged to carry out unsupervised teaching work at a school, a sixth-form college, relevant youth accommodation, children’s home or 16-19 academy in England. Each of the following activities is defined as teaching work

a) planning and preparing lessons and courses for pupils

b) delivering lessons to pupils (including delivering lessons through distance learning or computer aided techniques)

c) assessing the development, progress and attainment of pupils

d) reporting on the development, progress and attainment of pupils

Lay panellists - To be considered eligible for membership as a lay panellist applicants will not have worked or been engaged as a teacher. The lay panellist will bring their knowledge and experience to the panel. This role will suit individuals who have experience in dealing with investigations of a complex and sensitive nature.

Additional information for candidates

Equality and diversity

We encourage applications from talented individuals from all backgrounds and across the whole of the United Kingdom. Boards of public bodies are most effective when they reflect the diversity of views of the society they serve and this is an important part of the Government’s levelling up agenda.

Disability confident

We are a member of the Government’s Disability Confident scheme. We use the Disability Confident scheme symbol, along with other like-minded employers, to show our commitment to good practice in employing people with a disability. The scheme helps recruit and retain disabled people. 

As part of implementing the scheme, we guarantee an interview for anyone with a disability whose application meets the essential criteria for the role, set out in the advert, and who has asked that their application is considered under the scheme. Indicating that you wish your application to be considered under the scheme will in no way prejudice your application. By ‘minimum criteria,’ we mean that you must provide evidence which demonstrates that you meet the level of competence required under each of the essential criteria, as set out in the job-advert.

When you apply you will have the opportunity to select if you would like your application considered under this scheme.

Reasonable adjustments

We are committed to making reasonable adjustments to make sure applicants with disabilities, physical or mental health conditions, or other needs are not substantially disadvantaged when applying for public appointments. This can include changing the recruitment process to enable people who wish to apply to do so.

Some examples of common changes are:

• ensuring that application forms are available in different or accessible formats;
• making adaptations to interview locations;
• allowing candidates to present their skills and experience in a different way;
• giving additional detailed information on the selection / interview process in advance to allow candidates time to prepare themselves;
• allowing support workers, for example sign language interpreters;
• making provision for support animals to attend.

When you apply you will have the opportunity to request reasonable adjustments to the application process.

Principles of public life

Holders of public office are expected to adhere to and uphold the Seven Principles of Public Life https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/the-7-principles-of-public-life/the-7-principles-of-public-life--2.

Code of conduct for board members

The Government expects all holders of public office to work to the highest personal and professional standards. In support of this, all non-executive board members of UK public bodies must abide by the principles set out in the Code of Conduct for Board Members of Public Bodies. The Code sets out the standards expected from those who serve on the boards of UK public bodies and will form part of your terms and conditions of appointment.

Management of outside interests and consideration of reputational issues

Holders of public office are expected to adhere and uphold the Seven Principles of Public Life and the Code of Conduct for Board Members of Public Bodies. Before you apply you should consider carefully: 

• any outside interests that you may have, such as shares you may hold in a company providing services to government; 
• any possible reputational issues arising from your past actions or public statements that you have made; 
• and/or - any political roles you hold or political campaigns you have supported; 

which may call into question your ability to do the role you are applying for.

You will need to answer relevant questions in relation to these points when making an application. Many conflicts of interest can be satisfactorily resolved and declaring a potential conflict does not prevent you from being interviewed. If you are shortlisted for an interview, the panel will discuss any potential conflicts with you during that interview, including any proposals you may have to mitigate them and record that in their advice to ministers. Alongside your own declaration, we will conduct appropriate checks, as part of which we will consider anything in the public domain related to your conduct or professional capacity. This may include searches of previous public statements and social media, blogs or any other publicly available information. The successful candidate(s) may be required to give up any conflicting interests and their other business and financial interests may be published in line with organisational policies. 

Status of appointment

As this is an office holder appointment, you will not become a member of the Civil Service. You will not be subject to the provisions of employment law.

Appointment and tenure of office

Appointments are for the term set out in this advert, with the possibility of re-appointment for a further term, at the discretion of Ministers.  

Remuneration, allowances and abatement

You can claim reimbursement for reasonable travel and subsistence costs which are properly and necessarily incurred on official business, in line with the travel and subsistence policy and rates for the organisation to which you are applying.  

Pension and redundancy

This is an office holder appointment and does not attract any benefits under any Civil Service Pension Scheme. You will not be eligible for redundancy pay as you are not an employee. No other arrangements have been made for compensation upon the end of your term of appointment because an office holder who is appointed for a limited duration would have no expectation of serving beyond that period.

Application feedback

We will notify you of the status of your application. We regret that we are only able to offer detailed feedback to candidates who have been unsuccessful at the interview stage.

How to complain

We aim to process all applications as quickly as possible and to treat all applicants with courtesy.

Please contact  TRA.RECRUITMENT@education.gov.uk  if you would like to make a complaint regarding your application They will acknowledge your complaint upon receipt and respond within 15 working days.

Data protection

The Cabinet Office will use your data in line with our privacy policy.

Contact details

 TRA.RECRUITMENT@education.gov.uk