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Advice & Development WorkshopFor A

National Approach & ‘Good Practice’For The Issuing Of

‘Body of Persons’ (BoP) Approvals

National Training Day – Phoenix Theatre, London

13th June 2011

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This Presentation is based on ‘Guidance’ issued by

The Department for Education (DfE)

“Approval of a Body of Persons – guidance for local authorities and amateur groups “

http://media.education.gov.uk/assets/files/pdf/b/bop%20guidance.pdf

and

The NNCEE’s interpretation and ‘Good Practice’ from members

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Historically

This is nothing new

Local Authorities have always had a duty to implement the two exemptions under:

Children & Young Persons Act 1963

Sect 37 (3)(a)(b)

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Children and Young Persons Act 1963 Section 37(3) :

provides that a licence is not required for a child to take part in a performance if no payment is made (except for expenses) to the child (or any other person) for taking part in that performance AND:

a) they have not performed for more than 3 days in the last six months or;

b) the performance is made under arrangements made by a school or;

c) the performance is made by a body of persons approved for the purpose by the Secretary of State or by the local authority in whose area the performance takes place and no payment is made (except for expenses) to the child (or any other person) for taking part in that performance.

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Legal Standing???

Note the word Primarily!!

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Of course it doesn't only save the amateur sector a lot of work it also saves us

And we are still able to influence the care and concern for children as well as helping to enable groups to create more opportunities/experiences

for children.

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December 2010 DfE issue Guidance for BoPs

‘Approval of a Body of Persons –

guidance for local authorities and amateur groups’

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So why has the DfE issued this guidance on the current BoP exemption with the review of the

legislation underway?

Introduction 1.This guidance is intended to assist

local authorities and amateur groups to make greater use of Body of Persons Approvals.

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Within this guidance from the DfE it also quotes the 4 day rule

Although some LAs call it the 3 day rule and others the 5 day rule

So lets take the DfE Guidance and look at what is being advised

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Section 37(3) of the Children and Young Persons Act 1963 provides that a licence is not required for a child to take part in a performance if no payment is made (except for expenses) to the child (or any other person) for taking part in that performance AND:

a) they have not performed for more than 3 days in the last six months

4 day rule?????

or;

b) the performance is made under arrangements made by a school or;

c) the performance is made by a body of persons approved for the purpose by the Secretary of State or by the local authority in whose area the performance takes place and no payment is made (except for expenses) to the child (or any other person) for taking part in that performance.

BoP

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This last exemption is known as a Body of Persons Approval.

NOTE: The effect of (a) is to exempt the child from needing a licence for the first four days of performance in any six month period. Some amateur productions may not run for more than four days in a six month period.

In such cases, it is important to be aware that the children may, provided they are not being paid and have not participated in any other performances in the previous six months, benefit from exemption (a) and the organisation will not need a Body of Persons Approval in order to avoid obtaining licences.

If a Body of Persons Approval is granted, this means that the body putting on the performance has been approved to put on a performance involving participation of children, and the children

therefore do not need to be individually licensed. But more about approvals in a moment

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However it seem to me that confusion/difficulties can arise when both exemptions apply to the same production.

Example a production has 6 performances and has 20 children 5 have never performed before

how do we confirm this?

15 children have performed in the past 6 months

7 have only done 2 days in the past 6 months

And 8 have done more than 4 days

How should we licence them?? Suggestions or comments please

I think I would go for a body of persons licence for all of the children

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Who should apply for a Body of Persons approval?

The 1968 guidance entitled ‘The Law on Performances by Children’ states that a Body of Persons approval is intended for amateur productions, for example, entertainments arranged by bodies such as youth organisations, dramatic societies or churches where licences would otherwise be required for children to participate.

I think that this can be confusing again – it suggests to me that groups should apply for a BoP????

It seems to me that an organisation should be applying for licences for children regardless of any exemptions.

It is then for the LA to offer or suggest an exemption

I do not believe that an organisation should take it on themselves to exempt themselves – only in discussion/partnership with the LA concerned.

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Who can grant a Body of Persons Approval?

A Body of Persons Approval can be granted either by the relevant local authority, or by the Secretary of State. If a production is taking place in the area of a single local authority or a small number of authorities, the producer would be expected to apply to the relevant local authority or authorities where the production is to take place as they will be in a better position to assess the body’s suitability for approval.

In exceptional circumstances, for example where a group is putting on productions across a very large number of local authority areas, they may apply to the Secretary of State for approval.

There are very few BoPs issued by the Secretary of State

We expect however most applications to be made to local authorities.

Where does this leave LAs? –

NEEDING TO HAVE very clear guide lines of the processes

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Body of Persons Approvals – restrictions and conditions

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Body of Persons Approvals have the following restrictions and conditions, and amateur groups should be familiar with these prior to making an application.

If the circumstances of a production render it inappropriate (or ineligible) for a Body of Persons Approval, then licences should be sought for the children from the local authority in the normal way.

Again I feel that this is liable to be confusing – as it puts the onus on the group BUT surely the LA should in the first instance be advising the group/s of these restrictions – info leaflets - Colin leaflet

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I understand that 26 LAs are currently undertaking BoPs.and

There is the usual differences both in interpretation and process

However the following criteria is what the DfE states having sought advice from the NNCEE

Local authorities may give approvals on a restricted basis, for example, for a specified period of time or for a specified production,

more on this shortly ** because Essex issues on a per performance basis and Surrey issues for a period of time

and may withdraw an approval if for instance serious safeguarding concerns arise.

We would expect a local authority to discuss any concerns and restrictions on an Approval or the possible withdrawal of an Approval with the relevant group before a final decision is made.

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Only the organisation named in the Body of Persons Approval is authorised to put on performances without the need for applying for individual licences for children

Body of Persons Approvals are not transferable to different organisations.

Similarly, Approvals apply to the organisation putting on the performance rather than to individual children.

Children would therefore need to be licensed in the normal way if they took part in a performance by another organisation that did not have a Body of Persons Approval.

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A licence would still need to be obtained for a child if they were being paid to participate in a particular performance, even if a Body of Persons Approval had been granted to the organisation putting on the performance (they are only exempt from being licensed if not paid, apart from expenses).

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A local authority can only authorise Body of Persons Approvals for an organisation in relation to performances in the local authority’s own area.

A local authority can provide a Body of Persons Approval for an organisation in relation to a production in its area, even if that production involves children from other local authority areas. It is the organisation putting on the performance which is approved rather than the individual children.

And so if for arguments sake I had a group in Essex that had hired the O2 and that group thought that they were eligible for a Body of Person exemption they would apply to Greenwich for the BoP

This is currently the law – however even if there are no children from Greenwich and the organisation has no footing in Greenwich it is Greenwich that the group applies to for the BoP

It seems to me that this can only apply to a one off production.

And I assume that Greenwich would notify Essex that a group from Essex and Essex Children were performing at the O2?

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A Body of Persons Approval cannot authorise absence from school.

Therefore a BoP cannot be issued if time off from school is needed

A licence would need to be obtained as normal to authorise absence from school.

A Body of Persons Approval cannot authorise an organisation to take the child abroad to perform.

A licence application would need to be made in the usual way to authorise a child to perform abroad.

Magistrates Court Approval (Westminster?)

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Information to be provided in the application

The exact information required is likely to be specific to the approval being sought but it is reasonable to expect that a local authority would require the information below from any group making an application for a Body of Persons Approval. The amount of information is likely to vary, depending on whether the application is for a single production or a series of productions.

** I think that this is the time to advise that there are two ways of issuing a BoP either for:

a specific production

or a contract basis, say for a year when the Group is able to put on a number of production within the period of time without having to apply each time for a license (there is a need to inform the LA each time they put a performance on)

I think that the following criteria applies to both approaches with a couple of differences But I will show separate lists of criteria for each category

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Information Required for a Per Performance BoPDetails of the group, including name, address, an outline of the natureof its purpose and activities and the roles and responsibilities of individuals within the organisation.

NNCEE recommendationApplicants DetailsName of Amateur Company:Name of Applicant:Position in the Company:Address for correspondence:Town: County: Postcode:Tel. no.: Mobile: Email address The numbers and age range of children involved in the production

NNCEE recommendation Membership List – children

Name Date of birth Address

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Details of the production(s) and rehearsals, including date, venue anda short synopsis.

Details of the local authority approved chaperones that are involved with the group.

NNCEE RecommendationADULT HELPERS / CHAPERONES LISTName Address Chaperone licence & Issuing Authority

Details of the organisation’s child protection policies and procedures and relevant training provided to any staff.

Name and contact details of the nominated organisational representative primarily responsible for safeguarding to liaise with the local authority

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Information Required for a Contract Basis BoPDetails of the group, including name, address, an outline of the natureof its purpose and activities and the roles and responsibilities of individuals within the organisation.

NNCEE recommendationApplicants DetailsName of Amateur Company:Name of Applicant:Position in the Company:Address for correspondence:Town: County: Postcode:Tel. no.: Mobile: Email address The numbers and age range of children involved in the production

NNCEE recommendation Membership List – children

Name Date of birth Address

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Details of the production(s) and rehearsals, including date, venue and a short synopsis. (Where a group is applying for an approval covering a period of time, e.g. 6 months, arrangements should be made with the local authority about how and when information about productions can be provided nearer the time of the performance).

Details of the local authority approved chaperones that are involved with the group.

NNCEE RecommendationADULT HELPERS / CHAPERONES LISTName Address Chaperone licence & Issuing Authority

Details of the organisation’s child protection policies and procedures and relevant training provided to any staff.

Name and contact details of the nominated organisational representative primarily responsible for safeguarding to liaise with the local authority

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Considering whether to grant an Approval

The guidance states that a Body of Persons approval shall only be granted where the body is a reputable one which puts on performances in circumstances of the kind envisaged by Parliament when providing this exemption procedure. (See ‘Who should apply for a Body of Persons Approval’).

The 1968 guidance entitled ‘The Law on Performances by Children’ states that a Body of Persons approval is intended for amateur productions, for example, entertainments arranged by bodies such as youth organisations, dramatic societies or churches where licences would otherwise be required for children to participate.

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There may be a number of ways in which a local authority may wish to assess whether an amateur group is a ‘reputable’ body and suitable to be given a Body of Persons Approval. We know that some authorities expect a group to successfully apply for and administer licences for a specified amount of time or a set number of productions before they can be considered for a Body of Persons Approval. Other quicker alternatives may include seeking references from other organisations that the group has involvement with or other local authority areas in which they have successfully applied for and administered licences. These and other methods should be given due consideration.

This should become part of your own LAs processes and I would advise that you talk with your line manager to determine your own approach is determined.HoweverClearly there isn’t a definitive coming from the DfE and we all know that life would be more simple if we had the same process criteria etc across all LAsExercise in a while

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Other factors which may influence whether an Approval can be given and the nature of the Approval:

Local authorities may find the following suggestions helpful when considering applications for a Body of Persons Approval.

The purpose of this section is to highlight that Body of Persons Approval can be considered as an appropriate response to a variety of scenarios as local authorities have significant flexibility in terms of their approach.

Flexibility is nice BUT in my opinion creates problems especially on cross border issues or where an organisation works across several different LAs

I do think that we should try for uniformity

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For example, if an organisation is not one that is well known to the local authority, a ‘per production’ approach can be used in the short term, leading to a longer term approval later.

So if an amateur group only puts on 2 performances a year or less how many in total are they allowed to do before they are given access to a contract BoP?

This will still allow the local authority to consider the suitability of an organisation for a longer term approval (covering for example, six months or a year) but benefit the organisation by avoiding the need to apply for individual licences for children.

Is a contract long enough on a six or twelve month basis?

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Group Exercise!!! - 15 mins

To enable the development of a ‘National’ set of ‘Good Practice’ criteria form 5 groups and discuss:

What is or constitutes

a reputable Group which puts on performances

List criteria that a LA should apply to an Amateur Group’s application for a body of persons

Include details of a process to determine the collation of evidence that enables a group to be seen as reputable

Suggest the length of time that a contract BoP should be issued for

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The local authority may wish to visit the organisation and see how they would discharge their responsibilities before making a final decision.

LAs already have a need to undertake inspections – I feel that the amateur group who is on ‘trial’ must be inspected by the LA as part of the approval process.

Alternatively, an authority may wish to take account of any additional safeguarding measures that are in place as a result of an organisation’s membership of a trade association such as the Little Theatre Guild or the National Operatic and Dramatic Association. Such Associations will usually provide support and guidance to their members to ensure that they are aware of their responsibilities and share good practice on safeguarding procedures.

I believe that this is right BUT there is still no guarantee that the individual groups are complying with the legislation therefore in my opinion inspections albeit to a lesser frequency are still a necessary requirement

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For longer term approvals local authorities may also suggest a review of arrangements during or after the life span of the approval or vary the approval to meet the needs of particular performances.

I would have expected that when a contract BoP was up for renewal it would not be just a paperwork exercise but would involve some meeting and discussion on how the past had or had not gone

For example, if one performance involves a large number of children, the organisation may be required to provide additional information about the measures they have in place to handle this.

Would this not be part of an original issuing of a licence?

Additionally, if a group wishes to transport children to different venues for performances, the local authority may as a condition of the approval require the group to seek parental consent. Such parental consent need not necessarily be part of the evidence required for application purposes but a responsibility placed upon the group as a condition of approval.

I assume that this would form part of the initial contract

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Where an application is made but the organisation cannot provide some of the information that is considered reasonable (see paragraph 13 above), a local authority should work with the organisation to discuss what could be done to gain an approval. For example, if there appears to be no evidence that there are safeguarding procedures in place for adults to learn about working with children, the authority could share good practice that has been developed elsewhere.

I believe that as we are part of a Service industry we would be working with groups to find solutions

The authority will wish to consider how proportionate levels of safeguards can be established for any particular organisation taking into account the nature and frequency of the performances involving children and the presence of a chaperone (s).

Is it incumbent on the LA to have an information leaflet explaining the process?

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On the NNCEE’s web site – members area - you will find a series of files relating to ‘Body of Persons’

These files are for guidance and are available to all so that LAs can use similar forms and processes.

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A round up of criteria for a BoP:

Approval can be granted providing:

• the child performers receive no payment other than expenses;

• there is no time taken off from school

• the performance is for a stage production;

• the child performers are supervised by licensed chaperones;

• the organisation complies with the regulations on days and permitted hours of performance contained in the Children (Performance) Regulations 1968

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• that the Child Employment Team agreed that the rehearsal/performance venue(s) are suitable places for children to perform;

• the organiser has ensured appropriate arrangements are in place to transport child performers to and from the venue and released into the care of an appropriate person;

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• the organiser will not use the children in performances that may be dangerous;

• the organiser can demonstrate that it can meet any health, safety and welfare conditions set by the local authority;

• The holders of the licence must ensure that they keep records of each young person's performance as required by Schedule 3 Children and Young Persons, The Children (Performances) Regulations 1968 (see ECC pro forma). Approval can only be granted for young people who perform solely for the holder(s) of the Body of Persons Licence.

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Thank You for

taking part in this workshop

I HOPE YOU HAVE FOUND IT HELPFUL

I would appreciate it if you would complete the evaluation form and hand it to me before

we finish