In the UK, a child or young person can be suspended (temporarily removed from a school) for one or more fixed periods (up to a maximum of 45 school days in a single academic year) or permanently excluded (where the pupil is no longer allowed to attend school, unless the pupil is reinstated).
Only the headteacher of a school can suspend or permanently exclude a pupil on disciplinary grounds. The decision to exclude a pupil permanently should only be taken after careful consideration of the circumstances and only:
The legal responsibilities for those who suspend and permanently exclude children or young persons from educational settings are detailed in the statutory guidance published by the Department for Education (Suspension and Permanent Exclusion from maintained schools, academies and child or young person referral units in England, including child or young person movement, September 2023) – Suspension and Permanent Exclusion Guidance for maintained schools, academies and pupil referral units in England – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
The guidance sets out what schools and local authorities must do to comply with the law, and it applies to local-authority-maintained schools, academies, and child or young person referral units.
A guide for parents/carers on school behaviour and exclusion (May 2023) is also available, with links to a number of organisations to get free advice on suspension and permanent exclusion matters – A guide for parents/carers on school behaviour and exclusion – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Whenever a headteacher suspends or permanently excludes a pupil they must, without delay, notify parents/carers or the excluded pupil (if they are 18 years or older) of the period of the suspension or permanent exclusion and the reason(s) for it. They must also, without delay, after their decision, provide parents/carers with the following information in writing:
Written notification of the information above can be provided by delivering it directly to the parents/carers, leaving it at their usual or last known home address, or posting it to that address. Notices can be given electronically if the parents/carers have given written agreement for this kind of notice to be sent in this way.
Where a suspended or permanently excluded pupil is of compulsory school age the headteacher must also notify the pupil’s parents/carers of the days on which they must ensure that the pupil is not present in a public place at any time during school hours.
Parents/carers should note that during the first 5 days of any exclusion they must ensure that their child or young person is not present in a public place during school hours without reasonable justification. Parents/carers can be given a fixed penalty notice if they fail to do this.
Any suspension of a pupil, even for short periods, must be formally recorded.
It would be unlawful to exclude a pupil simply because they have special educational needs or a disability that the school feels it is unable to meet, or for a reason such as: academic attainment/ability; or the failure of a pupil to meet specific conditions before they are reinstated, such as to attend a reintegration meeting.
If any of these unlawful exclusions are carried out and lead to the deletion of a pupil’s name from the register, this is known as ‘off-rolling’. An informal or unofficial exclusion, such as sending a pupil home ‘to cool off’, is unlawful when it does not follow the formal school exclusion process and regardless of whether it occurs with the agreement of parents/carers.
A further example of off-rolling would be exercising undue influence over a parent to remove their child from the school under the threat of a permanent exclusion and encouraging them to choose Elective Home Education or to find another school place.
Under the Equality Act 2010, schools must not discriminate against, harass, or victimise pupils because of their: sex; race; disability; religion or belief; sexual orientation; pregnancy/maternity; or gender reassignment. For disabled children, this includes a duty to make reasonable adjustments to any provision, criterion or practice which puts them at a substantial disadvantage, and the provision of auxiliary aids and services.
These duties need to be complied with when deciding whether to exclude a pupil. Schools must also ensure that any provision, criterion, or practice does not discriminate against pupils by unfairly increasing their risk of exclusion. For example, if reasonable adjustments have not been made for a pupil with a disability that can manifest itself in breaches of school rules if needs are not met, a decision to exclude may be discriminatory.
The governing board must also comply with their statutory duties in relation to pupils with special educational needs (SEN) when administering the exclusion process, including (in the case of the governing board of relevant settings) using their ‘best endeavours’ to ensure the appropriate special educational provision is made for pupils with SEN and (for all settings) having regard to the Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) Code of Practice 2015.
If disruptive behaviour is related to a child’s or young person’s SEN or disability, the school should first take action to identify and address the underlying cause of the behaviour. For example, the school could increase SEN support or pastoral support, seek specialist advice from services, such as behaviour, family help and educational psychology teams.
If the child/young person has an Education, Health and Care (EHC) Plan, schools should contact the local authority SEND service and consider requesting an early annual review prior to making the decision to suspend or permanently exclude.
If parents/carers believe that their child or young person has been excluded as a result of their special educational needs not being met, they may need to consider one or more of the following:
If parents/carers feel that the EHC Plan does not reflect their child’s or young person’s needs, the provision they require, or further information is required, they may wish to ask for updated advice to inform an amendment to the EHC Plan. Parents/carers also have the right to request a re-assessment and further information about considering whether to request this can be found on the IPSEA website – Template letter 2: asking for a re-assessment of a child or young person’s needs (ipsea.org.uk)
For those children and young people with SEN but without an EHCP, the school should review, with their internal practitioners first and external practitioners thereafter, whether their current support arrangements are appropriate and what changes may be required.
In Dorset this could be through specialist teachers, Inclusion Leads, Family Help.
More information can be found on the Dorset Council Local Offer –
If the child or young person does not have an EHC plan but parents/carers think their child or young person needs more specialist help that cannot be met from the school’s SEN support, they can ask their local authority for an EHC needs assessment for their child/young person.
It is often helpful to discuss such a request first with the school to see if they can provide relevant evidence or are willing to make the request themselves. A needs assessment could lead to the child/young person getting an EHC plan.
If the child/young person has already been suspended or permanently excluded, parents/carers should raise this at both the governing board meeting and the independent review panel (if they request one).
In very exceptional circumstances, where it is in a pupil’s best interests, there may be a need for a school to place a child/young person on a temporary part-time timetable to meet their individual needs. For example, where a medical condition prevents a pupil from attending school.
A part-time timetable should:
It can, however, be extended as part of the regular review process. In some limited cases, a pupil with a long-term health condition may require a part-time timetable for a prolonged period.
Where the pupil has a social worker, the school is expected to keep them informed and involved in the process. If the pupil has an Education Health and Care Plan, the school should discuss the part-time timetable with the Local Authority so that any support package that is in place can be reviewed as swiftly as possible.
Schools should not be using a part-time timetable to manage behaviour. If parents/carers believe their child’s/young person’s school has placed them on a part-time timetable because of their behaviour they should approach the school to discuss their concerns in the first instance.
During the first five days of a suspension, the school should take reasonable steps to set and mark work for the child or young person. For longer suspensions, the governing board (or local authority for children or young persons suspended from a Learning Centre) must arrange suitable full-time alternative education to begin from no later than the sixth day of the suspension, if they are of compulsory school age (between the ages of 5 and 16).
Suitable education is defined as efficient education suitable to the child’s age, ability and aptitude and to any special educational needs the child may have.
When a child or young person has been permanently excluded, the local authority must arrange suitable full-time education to begin from the sixth school day after the first day the permanent exclusion took place.
This type of education is called alternative provision and includes education provided at pupil referral units, as well as some other types of education settings.
In the case of a child or young person who is attending a setting within a neighbouring local authority it is the ‘Home Authority’ (where the child or young person lives) that has responsibility for securing that provision.
If the governors agree with the head teacher and uphold the decision to suspend or permanently exclude, they must write to the parents/carers to let them know. If parents/carers dispute the decision, then they have fifteen school days from the date of the letter to ask for an Independent Review Panel (IRP) to consider the exclusion. The IRP hearing must take place within fifteen school days of the parents’/carers’ request.
IRPs contribute to a robust process of scrutiny to ensure exclusions are lawful, reasonable and procedurally fair.
Parents/carers can ask for a SEN expert to attend this hearing. The SEN expert’s role is to inform the panel of how the child’s or young person’s SEN may be relevant to the exclusion. The IRP panel cannot overturn the decision to exclude, but they can recommend or direct the governors to reconsider the decision.
IRP’s can be held via the use of remote access, e.g. video link, for suspensions and permanent exclusions, if requested. This is provided certain criteria are met.
Meetings held via the use of remote access should not be a default option and face to face meetings should always be encouraged. Holding meetings remotely must only be done if governing boards or arranging authorities are satisfied that the meeting is capable of being held fairly and transparently.
The SEND Tribunal can hear claims about disability discrimination by a school under the Equality Act 2010.
The SEND Tribunal has jurisdiction in respect of all exclusions/suspensions of disabled pupils from schools. Unlike an IRP, the SEND Tribunal is able to order reinstatement.
Claims to the SEND Tribunal can be made up to six months after the discrimination is alleged to have occurred. Where practicable, schools should retain records and evidence relating to an exclusion/suspension for at least six months in case such a claim is made.
Further information can be found on the following websites:
The SEND Tribunal has produced guidance on bringing a claim of disability discrimination against a school.
School Exclusions Hub : Coram Group
Exclusion from school | (IPSEA) Independent Provider of Special Education Advice
https://www.dorsetcouncil.gov.uk/w/exclusions-and-alternative-provision
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