Legislative and Regulatory Framework

The legislative and regulatory framework governing schools in the Primary, Voluntary Secondary and Community and Comprehensive sectors can be summarised as follows:

• The Education Act 1998  provides a statutory basis for the education It sets out the rights and responsibilities for all involved in education.
• The Department of Education (DE) has the statutory responsibility to implement the Education Act including the funding of recognised schools and accountability for such funding.
• The Financial Support Services Unit (FSSU) has issued guidelines that are applicable to all areas of the school’s operations including activities not funded by the DE.
• The Trustees / Patrons of boards exercise a general supervisory role and are ultimately responsible for the financial well-being of the school. The governing document for each sector provides details of their requirements.
• The Charities Act 2009 applies to all boards as each school is classified as a charity. All boards are required to register with the Charities Regulator. The FSSU submit information on behalf of boards from the accounts submitted online by the external school accountant/auditor.
• Revenue Commissioners requirements for PAYE, VAT and RCT and other relevant taxes.
  Board of Management Relevant Contracts Tax/Value Added Tax.
• The Central Statistics Office requires all boards to submit financial information under the Central Statistics Act 1993. The FSSU submit this information on behalf of boards from the accounts submitted online by the external accountant/auditor.