What is the Star Chamber?

The Star Chamber is one of the main vehicles in the Department's drive to reduce bureaucracy impacting on local authority children's services (including education) and schools.  It was formed in 1999 to review existing and proposed data collection exercises originating from within DCSF and re-launched in October 2006 with a wider remit and enhanced powers.  The Star Chamber ensures that new data collection exercises do not create unnecessary burden; do not duplicate in content existing collections; seeks to keep data requests to the absolute minimum needed to develop policy; and will amalgamate and streamline exercises wherever possible.

Until late 2008, decisions were based on consideration of proposals both internally, by data and finance experts, and by an External Scrutiny Group (ESG) comprised of head teachers and local authority representatives. In November 2008, the methodology and decision-making chain has been simplified, to reflect the Department's public commitments to reduce data burdens on schools and local authorities and in recognition of the balanced approach that the ESG had taken in their scrutinising. The ESG were then renamed the Star Chamber Scrutiny Board, and were given the power to make the decisions on whether the collection proposals should receive approval.

The Secretariat would be pleased to offer initial advice, at the outset, when policy colleagues requiring Star Chamber clearance are planning any data collection exercise involving schools or LAs.

Star Chamber approval is needed for all data collection exercises.

Step one, ask yourself:

• Is your exercise needed?
• Is every question you wish to ask essential to the need?
• Are you certain that the data doesn't exist already? Policy colleagues must check that no similar data is already held, both within the DCSF but also held by partner bodies such as OFSTED, QCA, LSC, TDA, CSCI and others. The Star Chamber Secretariat will be happy to advise.
• Will you need to make significant numbers of schools or local authorities aware of your exercise and, if so, have you thought how best to reach them?  For advice on this visit these links http://scu.teachernet.gov.uk/Client/ASP/
  _home.asp?Id=313&LevelNo=1  and
  http://ntweb1/communicationsdirectorate/marketingchannels/
  lagateway/default.asp (please note, these sites are only available from within the department).

Step two:

• Submit your completed Star Chamber template to the Secretariat.
• You should ensure that information about the data collection exercise is clearly explained, avoid jargon and acronyms.
• Your responses should be succinct, explaining, for example, how standards will be raised or outcomes for children affected, as a result of the exercise.
• You should contact the Data Services Group (Robert Bauling (ext 55286)) for advice on sample size and mechanisms for collecting the data; and that these are reasonable for the purposes required. Roger Edwards, (ext 62234) should be consulted if your plans involve the Department's Data Services Centre carrying out the collection.
  Questionnaires must adhere to the Star Chamber guidance on this website.

Step three:

• The Star Chamber process consists of consultation within the Department and with external partners through the monthly meeting of the Star Chamber Scrutiny Board, where the decision is made. Dates of the SCSB's meetings, and the last dates for receipt of papers, can be found at: http://www.standards.dcsf.gov.uk/starchamber/meetings/ We therefore recommend that you build in sufficient time into your exercises for this process.
• You should be prepared to field a person at the SCSB meeting to answer questions from the Board. Having looked at the papers and held an initial discussion, Board members let the Secretariat know on the morning of the meeting which business cases they wish to discuss with a representative, and the Secretariat will then let you know if you need to attend. Although the Board meetings take place in London, links can be made with other DCSF sites via 'spider-phone'.

Step four:

• Following clearance from Star Chamber, schools must be given a minimum of 4 weeks to reply, and LAs 2 weeks.  If LAs will need to gather any information from schools, then 4 weeks must be given to LAs also.
• Please note that any requests that will require changes in system design (such as social care collections or the school census) may involve a lead in time of many months. Changes to social care collections must be agreed six months prior to the start of the data collection year. 
• When considering the appropriate timing for a collection you should consult the data collections calendar so that you are aware of the other pressures that schools and local authorities may be under.