Nursery World - Exemptions to smacking ban under investigation by MPs

Children's secretary Ed Balls has ordered an investigation into whether teachers in part-time educational settings - such as Sunday schools and other religious education settings, and private tutors - should be allowed to continue to have the right to smack children.

Mr Balls has written to Sir Roger Singleton, the Government's chief adviser on children's safety, to clarify the issue and consider whether the law should be changed.

The question was raised in the House of Commons last week by Labour MP Ann Cryer, who said there should be no exemption to the law for teachers in 'madrassas or other religious schools'.

Corporal punishment is banned in all maintained and full-time independent schools, but teachers in part-time educational and learning settings - for example, where children receive religious instruction at the weekend - have the same rights as parents, which means that they can use 'the defence of reasonable chastisement' and give children a mild smack.

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