Independent School, Academy and Free School governance News

Alice de Coverley and John Friel in new Upper Tribunal decision on disability discrimination claims against private school

22nd March 2024

Two of 3PB's Education Law team appeared opposite each other in the Upper Tribunal, with Alice de Coverley acting for the Appellant, the parents of a disabled child who had been permanently excluded, and John Friel acting for the Respondent, an independent school. The case of SS v Proprietor of an Independent School [2024] UKUT 29 (AAC) is a significant and useful decision for those acting in the education and discrimination field. UT Judge Stout...

Ben Amunwa joins three highly rated practice teams at 3PB

12th March 2024

3 Paper Buildings (3PB) is delighted to announce that leading public law, education and employment barrister Ben Amunwa (2013 call) has joined chambers, from The 36 Group. Ben is a popular choice for high profile and landmark litigation, often involving multiple parties and novel points of law. He provides practical advice on resolving disputes to a wide range of clients. He has been ranked in the Chambers UK Bar Guide for Public and Administrative Law...

Education law newsletter - February 2024

14th February 2024

Welcome to the 10th edition of our education law newsletter. Edited by Katherine Anderson, it features analysis and contributions from Katherine Anderson, Olivia McGonigle, Jim Hirschmann, Matthew Wyard and Naomi Webber.

Case analysis covers:
- London Borough Camden v KT [2024] UKUT 225 AAC;
- LC and RC v Hampshire County Council [2023] UKUT 281 (AAC); and,
- A Multi Academy Trust v RR [2024] UKUT 9 (AAC)

24 November - Black Friday discount on ‘A Practical Guide to EHC Plan Appeals' by Katherine Anderson

21st November 2023

Law Brief Publishers have announced a one-day ‘Black Friday’ discount of 25% on Katherine’s detailed practitioner’s guide to this fast-growing and changing area of law, launched in June this year. The book, which usually retails for £69.99, will be on sale for £52.50. If you want to access the discount on ‘A Practical Guide to EHC Plan Appeals,' please click here anytime on Friday 24 November. About the book: This is a detailed practitioner’s guide to...

Mathew Gullick QC named as Lawyer of the Week by The Times

28th July 2022

3PB's Mathew Gullick QC has been named as Lawyer of the Week by The Times today, following the landmark judgment in favour of his client Mrs Lesley Brazel by the UK Supreme Court. Mathew Gullick QC acted for Mrs Brazel, a school music teacher, in the Supreme Court. Mrs Brazel claimed that her employer was wrong to give her fewer days of paid annual leave because she worked only during the school terms.  The UK's...

Part-time music teacher wins landmark case on calculating holiday pay for ‘part-year’ workers

20th July 2022

3PB barristers Mathew Gullick QC, Lachlan Wilson and Naomi Webber from 3PB's Employment and Discrimination Group - saw today a landmark judgment in favour of their music teacher client Mrs Lesley Brazel by the UK Supreme Court. This decision today follows her case being heard before an employment tribunal (in 2017), the Employment Appeal Tribunal (in 2018) and most recently the Court of Appeal (in 2019). The UK's highest court confirmed the rights of part-year...

Alice de Coverley and Gabriel Adedeji act for Ofsted in the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse

1st March 2022

3PB’s education and public law expert Alice de Coverley acted as Junior Counsel for Ofsted, led by Sarah Hannett QC, in this major public inquiry. Gabriel Adedeji, 3PB public law and regulatory law expert, acted as disclosure counsel for Ofsted. This latest strand of this ground-breaking investigation into the school sector by IICSA lasted for over three years and had several dimensions. Its first phase focused on residential specialist music schools and residential special schools,...

3PB Education Barristers author seminal new book on school exclusions and the law

10th November 2020

Education law specialist Charlotte Hadfield, who heads the Education Team, and her barrister colleague Alice de Coverley have co-authored the first book on the law on school exclusion since 2002 - 'The Law in Relation to School Exclusions' published by Law Brief Publishing. The book will be launched officially on November 25 at 5pm in a Q&A interview of both authors via Zoom. Exclusion from school is a sanction of last resort that can hugely...

3PB Barristers have created a dedicated webpage on its website to act as a hub for the many articles, briefings and webinar and podcast recordings about lockdown laws and regulations as well as practical issues like court attendance, e-bundles, remote and hybrid hearings. The Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic continues to create employment, contractual and other legal challenges which are in many ways unprecedented. The impact of the virus is being felt, and in response, 3PB have...

3PB’s specialist education  barristers Alice de Coverley and Matthew Wyard have co-authored a two-part report, for students and schools separately, about today’s GCSE results day (20 August 2020). This follows their A Level advice guide and webinar earlier this week. The Department for Education (“DfE”) changed its approach in a major U-turn five days after the A Level results were released. The switch to centre assessment grades (rather than the standardised/moderated grades) will apply to...

3PB education barristers Lachlan Wilson and Matthew Wyard join forces with insurance brokers Hayes Parsons and law firm DAC Beachcroft to advise schools and colleges on how they can best support students and pupils. We'll explore the implications of today's government decision to revert to centre-assessed grades decided by teachers rather than relying on the algorithm as previously advised for schools and colleges.  

Specialist 3PB education barristers Matthew Wyard and Alice de Coverley hosted a webinar this morning for those affected by last week’s A-level results. Watch the recording for some useful guidance now that the government has announced its decision to let teacher-assessed grades stand instead of those generated by the central algorithm.