Exclusions

School Disciplinary Procedures and Pupil Exclusions

Every school must have a behaviour policy, which sets standards of behaviour. This will outline the sanctions that will be used should a child's behaviour be deemed unacceptable. You will be able to obtain a copy of this policy from the school.

Many questions can be answered on the Frequently Asked Questions page.

If a child breaks the rules some of the sanctions they can expect are:

• A reprimand
• A letter to parents/carers
• Removal from their class or group
• Loss of break or lunchtime privileges
• Detention
• Fixed term exclusion
• Permanent exclusion

Schools are entitled to expect the support of parents, and they will ask you to be involved if your child is misbehaving. Within the law and a whole-school behaviour policy, Head teachers and teachers have legal authority to impose reasonable punishment and to promote and uphold good behaviour. Exclusion from school on the grounds of bad behaviour is the most extreme form this punishment can take.

Only a school's Head teacher, or acting Head teacher, has the legal power to exclude a pupil, including pupils above or below compulsory school age, from school on disciplinary grounds.

The law allows for two types of exclusion.

Fixed term exclusion: where a child who gets into serious trouble at school is excluded for a certain number of days (maximum of 45 days in any one academic year) and when a date is set for a return to school. During this period your child must not enter the school premises.

Permanent exclusion: where a pupil is not able to return to the school from which excluded (i.e. when the school is seeking to remove the pupil from their school roll).

The decision to exclude a pupil should be taken only:

• in response to serious breaches of the school's behaviour policy; and
• if allowing the pupil to remain in school would seriously harm the education or welfare of the pupil or others in the school.

A Head teacher will usually only permanently exclude a pupil as a last resort, after trying to improve their behaviour through other means. However, there are exceptional circumstances in which a Head teacher may decide to permanently exclude a pupil for a "one-off" offence.

General points to consider if your child has been excluded.

1. It is not an automatic expectation that every parent wishes to oppose the fixed term exclusion of his or her child. Parents may wish to accept the exclusion and seek to work with the school to ensure the pupil learns from the punishment.
2. If you are given a date for your child to return to school, and she/he does not return, she/he will be marked as absent without authorisation in the register, unless she/he is absent due to illness.
3. It is important to remember that you may only have heard your child's version of events and that this is rarely the whole story.
4. It is not helpful for your child to go anywhere near the school during the time of the exclusion, as this could make the matter worse.
5. It is important for you to contact the school and make arrangements for work to be sent home, unless the exclusion is only for a short period.
6. It is in your child's best interest for you to attend any meeting in school, and try to support the school in dealing with poor behaviour.
7. If the Children Services Department is involved in supporting either yourself or your family, you should discuss the exclusion with them and seek their advice and support.

At any stage of the process, the Local Authority Exclusions Officer will be happy to answer any queries you might have and to provide any relevant information.

The Department for Children, Schools and Families has detailed guidance on the exclusion process, which can be accessed through http://www.teachernet.gov.uk/wholeschool/behaviour/exclusion/2008guidance/

The Advisory Centre for Education (ACE) provides independent advice for parents. Assistance is available through their helpline on 020 7704 9822 or text 'AskACE' to 68808.

Contact Details

Advice and further information may also be obtained from the Inclusion and Access Team

Telephone: 0121-704 6768

Email: exclusions@solihull.gov.uk