Rulebook · Decision or problem

A child or young person has been suspended or permanently excluded from school

Exclusions are not decided by the SEND Tribunal. The school's governing board must consider a permanent exclusion. If it does not reinstate the pupil, an independent review panel can be asked for, with a SEN expert if wanted. A disability discrimination claim can be made to the SEND Tribunal. If the child has an EHC plan, the council can be asked about an early review.

Only the head teacher can exclude a pupil, and it must be done through the formal process, with notice to parents. The law has no separate category of informal exclusion. If a pupil of compulsory school age is suspended for more than 5 school days in a row, the governing board must arrange suitable full-time education from the sixth school day. For an academy, the academy trust does this. Suspensions that follow straight on from each other count together. For a pupil referral unit, the council does this. The school's duty during a suspension applies at maintained schools and academies. At other schools, the council's duty to arrange suitable education for a child of compulsory school age who would otherwise not get it, because of exclusion or another reason, can apply. After a permanent exclusion, the council must arrange suitable full-time education from the sixth school day after the exclusion took place. There are exceptions, such as a Year 11 pupil who has already taken, or missed, all the public examinations they were entered for.

Appeal right: this is not one of the matters that can be appealed to the SEND Tribunal (Children and Families Act 2014, s 51(2)). But a disability discrimination claim to the SEND Tribunal may be possible.

Ways to take this further

Listed in the order the rules give them. The order is not a ranking.

• Exclusions: governing board review and independent review panel
• Disability discrimination claim against a school
• Talk to the council: a meeting, or asking for reasons in writing
• Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman
• Judicial review (after a pre-action letter)

Type of rule

Law (Act or Regulations)This is the law, set by an Act of Parliament or by Regulations.

Rule id

issue.exclusion

Rules version

england-2026.10

Law as at

30 September 2026

Sources

• Education Act 2002, s 51ALaw (Act or Regulations)
• School Discipline (Pupil Exclusions and Reviews) (England) Regulations 2012Law (Act or Regulations)
• Equality Act 2010, Sch 17 para 3Law (Act or Regulations)
• Children and Families Act 2014, s 51(2)Law (Act or Regulations)
• Education and Inspections Act 2006, s 100Law (Act or Regulations), to verifyStill to confirm against s 111, not yet read, which schools are a "relevant school" for s 100: maintained schools and academies are inferred from s 100(1) and (5); whether a non-maintained special school is one has not been checked.
• Education (Provision of Full-Time Education for Excluded Pupils) (England) Regulations 2007, reg 3Law (Act or Regulations)
• Education (Provision of Full-Time Education for Excluded Pupils) (England) Regulations 2007, reg 4Law (Act or Regulations)
• Education (Provision of Full-Time Education for Excluded Pupils) (England) Regulations 2007, reg 5Law (Act or Regulations)
• Education Act 1996, s 19(1)Law (Act or Regulations)
• Education Act 1996, s 19(3A)Law (Act or Regulations)

Related

• Education for children out of school (Education Act 1996, section 19)
• Disability discrimination claim against a school
• Suspensions and exclusions

See the ways to challenge

The whole rulebook