The youth green paper says that schools will be able to reject localarrangements for information, advice and guidance services for pupilsand buy their own.
The document, published last week, sets out radical changes for theConnexions service, which currently provides these services. It states:"We would expect to see children's trusts, schools and colleges agreeingon arrangements for commissioning these services locally. But where theybelieve local provision is poor, they should have the right tocommission the service directly."
The Association of Directors of Education and Children's Servicesexpressed concern, saying this could undermine the role of children'strusts.
Chair Kevin Crompton said: "The principle of children's trustscommissioning from a proper needs assessment of young people is theright one. That it should be done in partnership with schools is a goodprinciple.
"But the opting out of that arrangement needs to be carefullycontrolled. I don't believe a school is in a better position than achildren's trust to commission and monitor services."
Christine Davies, director of children's services at Telford and WrekinCouncil, agreed and called on the Government to make sure schools couldnot opt out on a whim.
She said: "Individual schools pulling out of those arrangements wouldhave the capacity for weakening the overall provision for advice andguidance in an area.
"I think it could only be justified if a school could demonstrate thatthe service being provided was genuinely not adequate. Any schoolwishing to opt out should have the obligation placed upon it to have todemonstrate why the service is not meeting the needs of young people. Itwill not be good enough, in my view, for a school just to say they don'tlike it and want it done in a different way," she added.
A senior local authority source said the plan had come as asurprise.
The source added: "The Government is doing an awful lot to put us in aproper position as co-ordinators and commissioners of children'sservices within a national policy framework. Then you get thesewhisperings that schools can opt out of it, which just makes us worrythat we haven't got the framework to discharge our newresponsibilities."
However, the Secondary Heads Association welcomed the freedom to optout, saying that local authorities should not have "a monopoly" oversuch services.
