The Office of the Ombudsman has said that after a complaint lodged with in April by a candidate for the forthcoming elections to the European Parliament, an investigation was conducted by the Commissioner for Education into the policy used by the Education Division in relation to visits to schools by prospective candidates.
The Commissioner explained that it transpired that ”a written policy was only formulated and distributed to all Heads of Schools and Heads of College Network five days after the complaint was communicated to the Ministry responsible for education.”
Possible loopholes were identified by the Commissioner for Education, who also recommended that the policy be made public.
The Commissioner said that the recommendations – modification of the policy document and publicity on the internet – were accepted by the Ministry in question.
The policy document, revised with effect from the 15th May 2024 – is available to view by clicking here [1].
The Commissioner emphasised that it is of ”paramount importance that the policy be applied and implemented in good faith across the board.”
Photo: Office of the Ombudsman