Citation, commencement and interpretation

1. —(1) These Regulations may be cited as the Office for Standards in Education, Children’s Services and Skills (Transitional Provisions) Regulations 2006 and shall come into force on 12 December 2006.

In these Regulations—

“the 2006 Act” means the Education and Inspections Act 2006;

“the existing Chief Inspector” means Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Schools in England; and

“the preparatory period” means the period beginning with the day on which these Regulations come into force and ending immediately before the date on which section 118 of the 2006 Act (functions of the Chief Inspector) comes into force.

Transitional provisions

2. During the preparatory period—

(a) section 116(1)(a) (functions of the Office) of the 2006 Act has effect as if after “his functions” there were inserted “on and after the date on which section 118 comes into force”; and

(b) Schedule 11 (the Office for Standards in Education, Children’s Services and Skills) to the 2006 Act has effect as if—

(i) the references to the Chief Inspector in paragraphs 1, 6(2) to (4) and 12(2) and (3) were references to the existing Chief Inspector;

(ii) in paragraph 12(1) after “Chief Inspector” there were inserted “on and after the date on which section 118 comes into force”.

Preparatory duties of the existing Chief Inspector

3. During the preparatory period the existing Chief Inspector must take steps to ensure that all necessary arrangements are in place for the assumption by the new Chief Inspector( 2 ), on the date on which section 118 of the 2006 Act comes into force, of the functions conferred on her by virtue of Part 8 of that Act.