The Children and Young Persons Act 2008 requires the governing body of a maintained school to appoint a member of staff at the school to be a designated person for looked after children and care leavers who are registered pupils at the school.

The Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) is consulting on draft regulations which set out the qualifications and experience which the designated person is expected to have, namely that the role should be carried out by a qualified teacher, headteacher or acting headteacher.
 
The DCSF is also consulting on draft statutory guidance which sets out the role and responsibilities of the school governing body and person appointed to carry out the designated teacher role.
 
The consultation on both the draft regulations and the statutory guidance will run until 20 May 2009.  The draft regulations and draft statutory guidance can be downloaded from the DCSF e-consultation website, linked below.