46 ANNUAL REPORT 2015 An obvious explanation could be that most schools rarely make actual decisions. While this is routine work for a case worker in the social services department, it is an exception for a school headmaster. Indubitably, another explanation is that a closer demarcation of that which in legal terms constitutes decision-making and that which is ‘just’ de facto administrative law activity can prove difficult. The Public Administration Act does not define what is to be understood by a decision. Then again, from the Act’s legislative history it can be deduced that the decisions that are made during the course of an ordinary school day are not decisions within the meaning of the Act. Consequently, when a school decides that running in the corridors is not allowed and that a pupil can be sent out of the classroom these are not decisions within the meaning of the Act. Similarly, the formation of classes is not regarded as a decision within the meaning of the Act. On the other hand, the decision of which school a child will attend lies within the meaning of the Act. To exclude a pupil from school – even for just a few days – is a decision within the meaning of the Act as well. This also goes for the decision to implement one-on-one schooling for a pupil. In other words, it is important that schools realise when they are about to make a decision within the meaning of the Public Administration Act and when the decision is ‘just’ part of de facto administrative law activity. The examples here show that far-reaching decisions often lie within the meaning of the Act. LONG LIST OF DEMANDS ON SCHOOLS When a school makes a decision – that is, a decision of a serious nature – this means that there are a number of requirements in the Public Administration Act which must be met, as mentioned earlier. Among other things, the parents or the legal guardian must be consulted before a decision is made, and it is necessary to give grounds for the decision. In addition to this, the Access to Public Administration Files Act stipulates the duty to take notes, meaning the duty to write down what has happened in the case. Those two rules are supplemented by various non-statutory basic legal principles and legal maxims. Besides, the schools must of course also comply with and understand other legislation correctly, including the Primary and Lower Secondary Education Act with appurtenant regulations. This is a challenge for the schools, which generally do not have any legal expertise to consult.