Pupil Exclusion and Suspension from School

The Exclusion Team offer support and advice to Schools and Parents on exclusions and alternatives to exclusion.

For advice and guidance on all pupil exclusion matters please contact the Exclusions Team at the email address or telephone numbers below:

Paul Jennings          Exclusions Officer               01274 432446

Samantha Griffiths   Exclusions Officer              01274 435239

Karen Roper            Senior Exclusions Officer   01274 439333

email: exclusionsteam@bradford.gov.uk

The annual exclusion figures for Bradford for the academic year 2020-2021

This report has been presented to Schools Forum and is now published online. The intention is that the report will provide a shared overview on exclusion and suspension information across Bradford. It aims to enable school and service review for strategic planning and allow freedom of information requests that usually come to the local authority to be accessed from this online report, reducing work within the exclusions team and across service areas.

Bradford Annual Exclusions Report September 2020 - July 2021 can be accessed here.

Direction Off-Site to Another Educational Provision 

Maintained schools can direct pupils off site to improve behaviour as set out in Section 29A Education Act 2002 and further defined in the Education (Educational Provision for Improving Behaviour) Regulations 2010. It is often used when a pupil is at risk of permanent exclusion and parental consent is not required, however, it makes sense for it to be a collaborative process so far as is reasonably practicable.

This legislation states:

“The governing body of a maintained school in England may require any registered pupil to attend at any place outside the school premises for the purpose of receiving educational provision which is intended to improve the behaviour of the pupil.”

Academies whose funding agreement and/or articles of association make clear that they comply with the legislation can also direct pupils off-site.

Direction off-site for the improvement of behaviour guidance to schools

Managed Moves

Where pupil is struggling to manage a school environment and may be at risk of suspension or exclusion a pupil at any type of school may also transfer to another school as part of a ‘managed move’ where this occurs with the consent of the parties involved, including the parents and the admission authority of the school. However, the threat of exclusion or suspension must never be used to influence parents to remove their child from the school.

A Managed Move Best Practice Guidance has been developed to support.

School Suspension and Exclusion.

Decisions to exclude pupils from school are always as a last resort and made by the Head teacher. The decision to exclude should be a reasonable, fair and proportionate way of dealing with the disciplinary breach, taking into account any mitigating considerations, as set out in the DfE Exclusions Guidance. The latest guidance on exclusions (2017) may be downloaded here. 

Parents and head teachers can also seek advice from:  

• Coram Children's Legal Centre https://www.childrenslegalcentre.com/ 
• ACE Education http://www.ace-ed.org.uk/ 
• The school Exclusion Project https://schoolexclusionproject.com

If your child has special educational needs or disability (SEND) you may wish to seek advice from:

• Bradford SEND Information and Advice Support Service (SENDIASS) https://www.barnardos.org.uk/what-we-do/services/bradford-sendiass   01274 513300, or
• National Autistic Society (NAS) School Exclusion Service (England) 0808 800 4002 or schoolexclusions@nas.org.uk 
• Independent Parental Special Education Advice http://www.ipsea.org.uk/

Support for Governing Boards

The National Governance Association - Exclusions: A guide for governing boards can be accessed at: https://www.nga.org.uk/getmedia/7363021a-a7ad-488d-bc31-ff5aab54ba3c/Exclusions-guidance-final-2019.pdf

Statutory Guidance Behaviour and discipline in schools: guide for governing bodies from the DfE can be accessed at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/behaviour-and-discipline-in-schools-guidance-for-governing-bodies

The Exclusions Team have prepared a video for governors to give an overview of their duties connected to permanent exclusions and fixed period suspension from school. The video can be accessed at the following link: https://vimeo.com/599634948/f546029adf

Support for Schools

Additional support to schools for pupils at risk of exclusion can be made to the Social Communication, Interaction and Learning Team https://bso.bradford.gov.uk/content/scil-team, Educational Psychology Team https://bso.bradford.gov.uk/schools/CMSPage.aspx?mid=166, and/or holding a multi-agency meeting in school to review unmet need holistically with the family. Secondary schools can also seek support and advice from their behaviour and attendance collaborative (BAC) https://bso.bradford.gov.uk/content/behaviour-and-attendance-collaboratives.

Behind the Blade Educational Knife Crime Prevention Programme. The programme is aimed at young people aged 10 to 17 who are at risk of, or involved in, knife related behaviour to reduce their risk and divert from offending behaviours. The programme is delivered by practitioners trained in the Behind the Blade programme from the Bradford Youth Justice Service. This is a pilot scheme and wider aims are to support schools in reducing the need to exclude where appropriate as this programme is a suitable intervention to support the young person and the school in managing risk through the modules detailed below. The programme is delivered as a 1-2-1 intervention programme over 3-6 weeks (6 modules) using worksheets, interactive exercises and discussion, either in school or other suitable venue.

The programme can be tailored to suit the needs of the individual depending on the circumstances. There is no charge to schools for this pilot programme; schools can refer directly using the referral form which details the modules included in the programme, or via your school safer schools police officer or school exclusion team. Please send completed referrals with parent consent to AdminYouthJusticeService@bradford.gov.uk

If you want to discuss the programme and how it can be used to support please contact Toni Carroll at the Youth Justice Service toni.carroll@bradford.gov.uk or Bradford Exclusions Team Karen Roper karen.roper2@bradford.gov.uk.

Types of School Suspensions and Exclusion

Fixed Term Suspensions 

These are short-term exclusions and pupils must be given a date for return to school. A return date should be given to parents in the letter informing them of the exclusion.

Lunch Time Suspensions

Pupils whose behaviour is disruptive at lunchtime and are excluded for the lunchtime session count as a fixed period exclusion of ½ day. A return date should be given to parents in the letter informing them of the lunchtime exclusion period.

Permanent Exclusions

Permanent exclusion is the most serious sanction a school can give if a child does something that is against the school’s behaviour policy. It means that the child is no longer allowed to attend the school pending the outcome of the exclusion process. Permanent exclusion should only be used as a last resort.

The head teacher’s duty to inform the parents about a fixed term suspension or permanent exclusion

Whenever a head teacher excludes a pupil they must, without delay, provide parents with the following information in writing:
• the reason(s) for the fixed period suspension or permanent exclusion;
• the period of a fixed-period exclusion or, for a permanent exclusion, the fact that it is permanent;
• parents’ right to make representations about the exclusion to the governing board (in line with the requirements set out in paragraphs 52 to 60) and how the pupil may be involved in this;
• how any representations should be made; and
• where there is a legal requirement for the governing board to consider the exclusion, that parents have a right to attend a meeting, to be represented at that meeting (at their own expense) and to bring a friend.

Letter models, forms and guidance are available on the next tab or at: https://bso.bradford.gov.uk/content/exclusions/letter-templates-forms-and-guidance 

The head teacher’s duty to inform the governing board and the local authority about a fixed period suspension or permanent exclusion

The head teacher must, without delay, notify the governing board and the local authority of:
• any permanent exclusion (including where a fixed-period suspension is followed by a decision to permanently exclude the pupil);
• any suspension which would result in the pupil being excluded from school for a total of more than five school days (or more than ten lunchtimes) in a term; and
• any suspension which would result in the pupil missing a public examination or national curriculum test.

Other than for permanent exclusions and those fixed suspensions made which would result in a pupil missing a national curriculum test or public examination, head teachers notify the local authority via inputting the exclusion on their data management system, which is then pulled through to the local authority systems which are monitored.

For notifications required to be made via forms to the local authority all letters, forms and guidance are available on the next tab or at: https://bso.bradford.gov.uk/content/exclusions/letter-templates-forms-and-guidance 

Withdrawal (rescinding) of a permanent exclusion decision

Head teachers can withdraw any permanent exclusion not reviewed by the Governing Board. In these cases schools are required to send a copy of the withdrawn letter sent to parent to the Exclusion Team and they MUST ensure their Information Management Team is made aware of this to ensure their system is updated with the withdrawn exclusion decision. 

Where there has been a permanent exclusion decision withdrawn and the criteria in Appendix A – A summary of the governors boards duty to review the head teachers decision to exclude - are met then a governor meeting MUST still be convened.  

Day 6 Provision - Children's Services Guidance

Pupils with SEND or In Care to the Local Authority

Pupils with an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) should not be permanently excluded in the first instance. School should make a fixed term exclusion and contact the SEND officer for an urgent review of the EHCP.

Where a pupil is 'looked after', schools should contact the Head teacher for the Virtual School, Jonathan Cooper, to discuss concerns and update their support plan as required. 

School reporting to DfE

As well as reporting on day one of a permanent exclusion to the Exclusion Team the school is required to update their Information Management system with this exclusion. When a permanent exclusion has completed the process and if the pupil is then removed from the school roll they are required, at set points in the school year, to report these to the DfE on the Collect System. 

Training for Governors:

Please contact the exclusionsteam@bradford.gov.uk for details and to book