MINISTRY OF EDUCATION - SUPERVISION OF STUDENTS OUTSIDE SCHOOL HOURS BY DECISION OF PARLIAMENT - Filenews 26/3
The Plenary Session of the House of Representatives approved the amendment to the Elementary Education Law, which regulates the issue of supervision and guarding of students before the start and after the end of school hours. According to the new decision, the responsibility for supervising students outside school hours is transferred to the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports and Youth (YPAN).
The legislative regulation was deemed necessary to fill the gap that existed regarding the responsibility for the safety of students who are in the school area outside the specified opening hours.
Based on the final text formulated in the Parliamentary Committee on Education and Culture, the responsibility for supervision is transferred to the Ministry of Education, Sports and Youth, instead of to the school boards as originally provided for in the proposal. The implementation of the regulation will start from the 2026-2027 school year.
The rapporteur of the proposal, Parliamentary Representative of DIPA Alekos Tryfonidis, underlined that there was a "very serious safety issue" for children who remain at school before and after hours, until their parents pick them up. As he said, these children are exposed to risks, pointing out that even an incident of injury or accident would be a "shame for everyone".
He explained that the aim of the regulation is to provide the possibility of supervision for about half an hour before the start and half an hour after the end of the courses, with the Ministry taking responsibility and proceeding with the necessary consultations for the implementation of the measure.
CNA
