August 2015

A responsive County Council providing excellent and efficient local services

General guidelinesforpupil discipline cases and meetings of Pupil Discipline Committees (PDC’s).

Introduction

This booklet has been prepared to assist Clerks to Pupil Discipline Committees to fulfil their

roles as effectively as possible. In addition to this booklet clerks, headteachers and governors

are recommended to read the DfE (Department for Education) Exclusion from maintained schools, Academies and pupil referral units in England issued inSeptember 2012.

Clerks to governing bodies need to be clear whether they have also beenappointed as Clerk to the Pupil Discipline Committee (PDC). Whilst clerks to governing bodies do not have to be clerks to PDCs it is recommended good practice that they should be. This is a matter that requires a decision by the governing body at the time that the committee is established – usually at the first governing body meeting in the Autumn Term. The important issue is that governing bodies do appoint a Clerk to the PDC because of the need to adhere to very strict time limits in the event of an appeal having to be heard by the PDC.Although under the 2012 Guidance it does not stipulate that a Clerk should be appointed it does state that “clear minutes are taken of the meeting as a record of the evidence that was considered”. It would be good practice for a Clerk to be appointed and it is suggested that the headteacher or a governor cannot be the clerk.

The LA suggests that the governing body should appoint a Pupil Discipline Committee (PDC) at the first meeting in theAutumn Term. Ideally this should consist of between 3 and 5 membersand have both male and female representation. Governing bodies mayfind it advantageous to appoint a panel of governors from which the PDCmay be drawn in a previously agreed order (e.g. alphabetically). Thequorum for a meeting is 3. Also, because of the need to adhere to strict time limits, it is important that the PDC is given full delegated authority in respect of its terms of reference. Suggested terms or reference are given in the booklet issued by Strategic Support Services entitled “Advice and Guidance on setting up Governing Body Committees. The terms of reference are also set out in the Handbook for Clerks to Governing Bodies (Chapter 8).

Prior to a Meeting of a Pupil Discipline Committee (PDC)

Clerks can expect to receive first notification of a decision to exclude a pupilwhether for a fixed period or permanently, from copies of the following correspondence provided by the headteacher:

  • the letter sent to a parent(s)[1] giving the reason(s) for the exclusion,
  • notification of the decision to the Exclusions Office at County Hallwhich may include, in addition to the standard form required by the LA, any additional background material provided by the school to justify the exclusion.

The head teacher must, without delay, notify the governing body and the local authority of:

  • a permanent exclusion (including where a fixed period exclusion is made permanent);
  • exclusions which would result in the pupil being excluded for more than five school days (or more than ten lunchtimes) in a term; and
  • exclusions which would result in the pupil missing a public examination or national curriculum test.

Key points relating to exclusions:

  • Only the headteacher, or in the absence of the headteacher, the teacher whois acting in that role, can exclude a pupil and this must be on disciplinary grounds;
  • exclusions can be permanent or for afixed term. A fixed term exclusion can be extended or converted to a permanent exclusion in exceptional cases;
  • permanent exclusions and all fixed term exclusions that would lead to a pupil being excluded for over 15 days in a school term or missing a public examination automatically trigger a meeting of the PDC;
  • parents retain the right to request a meeting of the PDC for shorter cumulative fixed term exclusions of more than 5 but not more than 15 school days in a term.
  • on the completion of a term a school would start counting again for cumulative exclusions for the following term;
  • it is up to the PDC to decide whether or not to uphold the headteacher’s decision to exclude for reasons that must be specified as part of the decision;
  • if a decision to uphold the headteacher’s decision to permanently exclude a pupil is made, the parent(s) have the right to have the PDC’s decision reviewed by the Independent Review Panel;
  • the PDC cannot increase the severity of an exercise they can:-

Uphold exclusion;

or

Direct the pupil’s re-instatement, either immediately or by a particular date

  • Forcumulative exclusions of 5 days or less in a school term, parents can make representations to the PDC but the committee cannot overturn the exclusion.
  • Where there is police involvement and parallel criminal proceedings the PDC has no power to postpone the meeting to consider the pupil’s exclusion beyond the statutory time limit.

Please note however that care should be taken to ensure that the Guidelines are up to date. The current DfE Guidance that should be followed is referred to in the introduction to this booklet.

Convening a meeting of the PDC

Points to bear in mind in setting up a meeting of the PDC are:

  • the statutory time limits for a meeting to be convened are:
  • for a fixed term exclusion of between 6 and 15 school days in any one term,(which does not bring the pupil’s total number of days of exclusion tomore than 15 in one term)within 50 school daysof the start of the exclusion,but only if the parent requests such a meeting.
  • for a permanent exclusion, or a fixed period exclusion of more than 15 school days in one term, (or which brings the pupil’s total number of days exclusion to more than 15 in one term)within 15 school daysof the start of the exclusion.
  • if a pupil’s total number of days of fixed period exclusion exceeds 15 school days in one term, any subsequent fixed period exclusion(s) of the pupil in the same term would again trigger the governing body’s duty to consider the circumstances of the exclusion.
  • if any exclusion would result in the pupil missing a public examination the PDC should try to meet before the date of the examination. If exceptionally, it is not practical for the PDC to meet before the time when the pupil is due to take the examination then, the chair of governors – using his/her power to act in an emergency – may consider the exclusion and decide whether or not to re-instate the pupil. In these cases the parent(s) has the right to make oral representations to the PDC or as the case may be, the chair. If possible the chair should have the advice of the clerk and a LA officer.
  • If any governor has a connection with the pupil, or knowledge of the incident that led to the exclusion, which could affect his/her ability to act impartially, he or she should step down;
  • Invite the parent(s)/carers,pupil, headteacher and an LA officer to the meeting at a time and place convenient to all parties (but in compliance with the relevant statutory time limits). A standard letter is at Annex ‘A’.
  • ensure that parent(s)/carers are aware that they are entitled to be supported at the meeting, e.g. by the Prevention Service or represented by their legal adviser, and try to establish whether they wish to attend (the headteacher will usually have a good idea about this);
  • check whether the parents/carers have any special requirements which need to be met to enable them to attend the meeting or whether they require an interpreter;
  • ensure that there are facilities for the parents/carers to meet privately with their adviser prior to the meeting;
  • establish whether the LA intend to make written representations to the PDCand whether a representative will be present at the meeting;
  • advise all the partiesof the date by which any written representations should be received;
  • ensure that all parties receive copies,at least 5 days in advance of the meeting, of all papers going to the PDC together with a copy of the agenda and a list of all those who will be present at the meeting (Including to the pupil if it is know that they are attending the meeting). If, for any reason, information has been received too late for circulation, there should be a short adjournment at the meeting to give time for the papers to be read and considered, and, where parents are represented, for them to consult with their representative;
  • ensure that water or soft drinks are available at the meeting;
  • Whilst committees must adhere to the statutory time limits a failure to do so does not invalidate any decision on the ground that it was made out of time.

The Agenda for the Meeting

A draft agenda for a PDC meeting is attached at Annex B

The Record (Minutes) of the Meeting

The record of the meetingshould record events which occur in meetings of the PDC and which do not normally figure in other committee meetings (e.g. the comings and goings of participants) to be able to demonstrate that the proceedings were “fair”; and so that it canbe demonstrated that the PDCacted reasonably.Failure to act reasonably is one of the grounds on which a complaint can be made to the Secretary of State. The record should:

  • list the documents presented to the meeting withconfirmationthat all participants received them;
  • in the case of documents tabled at the meeting note that all present were provided with a copy and were given the opportunity to read and discuss the documents with their representatives (it is good practice to offer private facilities for such discussions if requested in which case the meeting will stand adjourned to allow this to happen). Under no circumstances should any party attending the meeting be left alone with the PDC;
  • record the name(s) of everyone who attends the meetingand in what capacity;
  • record who chaired the meeting – if no-one has previously been elected to chair the meeting do not forget to elect a chair;
  • adhere to the order set out in the agenda;
  • detail any material points made by any of the parties not covered in any written representations;
  • record the decision of the committee i.e. to uphold the decision of the headteacher or not to uphold the decision of the headteacher (in this latter case also record the date by which the child/young person is to be reinstated if not immediately);
  • if the chair uses his/her casting vote then record that fact (in those PDC’s with even nos. of members the chair has an extra or casting vote);
  • ensure that the committee gives the reason(s) for its decision and set outthe reason(s)in the record of the meeting;
  • where exclusion was as a result of a number of issues rather than as a result of a single event, record the committee’s assessment of actions which had been undertaken to improve the child’s behaviour in considering whether to exclude again;
  • in the case of permanent exclusion where the decision to exclude isupheld, record whether the committee were satisfied (a) that all possible strategies to improve a pupil’s behaviour had been tried and had failed and (b) that there are satisfactory arrangements for the pupil to continue their education while away from school;
  • in the case of permanent exclusion where the decision is to re-instate, record whether it was considered that extra short term support from the LA would be required to ensure successful re-integration.

An example of a record of a meeting relating to a permanent exclusion is attachedat Annex C.

Other points to bear in mind

The clerkshould alwaysretain their actual notes of the meeting in the event of an appeal to an independent tribunal or the decision being challenged at a later date.Should parents seek judicial review of a decision by a PDC it is likely that any notes would be disclosable and a typed transcript may be requested by the Court. Similarly, a request for disclosure may be made following a complaint to the Local Government Ombudsman.

Also, it should be noted:

  • it is not realistic to expect that the name of the pupil can be withheld from the members of the PDC or, in the case of an review of the PDC’s decision against a permanent exclusion, from the members of the Review Panel. Therefore, there is no reason why the record of the meeting should not record the name of the pupil and of his/her parent(s)/carer;
  • the burden of proof is “on the balance of probabilities” even where a criminal offence is alleged. The DfE is expected to issue further guidance on this but if there are any queries you should contact Legal Services (01609 532924);
  • If there is any likelihood that a claim may be made alleging racial or disability discrimination or if the pupil has Special Educational Needs then it is essential that advice about the conduct of the meeting should be sought from Legal Services(tel: 01609 532924) prior to the meeting taking place;
  • the chair of the committee should sign the record of the meeting after the record has been agreed by him/her;
  • a separate confidential file should be kept containing agendas, records of meetings, all the documentation submitted in connection with each case and copies of letters sent;
  • where there is a request for a review of the PDC’s decision against a permanent exclusion it is the record of the meeting and the associated documentation that should be sent to the Clerk to the Appeal Panel;
  • the headteacher is responsible for keeping the papers in a secure location.

Follow-up action after the meeting

  • Write to the parent(s)/carer(s)(and/or the pupil if aged 18 years or over) and the LA within one school day of the meeting setting out the decision of the PDC and giving the reason(s) for the decision. Sample letters are at annexes D, E and F.
  • Where the pupil resides in a different LA from the one that maintains the school then inform that LA – the pupils ‘home’ LA.
  • in the case of permanent exclusion, explain the right to have the PDC’s decision reviewed by an Independent Review Panel (IRP) to which they can make oral or written statements, giving the name and address to which to write, the timescale and explain that the notice of appeal should set out the grounds for the appeal;
  • In the case of permanent exclusion all correspondence must be copied to the Exclusions Officer at County Hall and the Clerk to the Appeals Panel; Parents should also be informed of their right to request an SEN expert at a Review Panel Meeting (see model letter D). Academy Trusts may arrange their own Independent Review Panel at their own cost but members of the Panel and the Clerk must be appropriately trained (within the 2 years prior to the date of the review). These meetings would be at their own expense. Academies may “buy into” the LA’s Independent Review Panel system. If academies choose to do so they should be in contact with The Appeals Clerk, Democratic & Legal Services (Tel 01609 532 943) to establish a likely cost to the academy.
  • In the case of a fixed term exclusion the letter to parent(s)/carer(s)/pupil should include the following paragraph:

“You should also be aware that if you think the exclusion relates to a disability your child has, you can make a claim of disability discrimination to the Special Educational NeedsDisability Tribunal (SEND), Mowden Hall, Staindrop Road, Darlington, Co. Durham, DL3 9DN”

andensure that the note of the committee’s decision and the reasons for decision on the exclusion are placed on the pupil’s record;

  • regulations require that where a function has been delegated to a committee that committee shall report to the governing body in respect of any action taken or decision made in the exercise of that function. It is therefore necessary for the PDC to report to the full governing body. For most committees this is usually in the form of the minutes of the committee. However, in this instance the report should just record the date the committee met, the reason for the exclusion, the period of the exclusion and whether the committee upheld the exclusion or directed the reinstatement of the pupil and whether the reinstatement was immediate or by a particular date.

Requests for a review of the PDC’s decision to the Independent ReviewPanel (Permanent Exclusions only)

In the event of a request for a review of the PDC’s decision to the Independent ReviewPanel:

  • the clerkto the PDC may not Clerk the Review Panel;
  • The clerk to the PDC should provide to the clerk to the Panel the following:

A copy of all the papers considered by the PDC;

A copy of the minutes of the meeting of the PDC;

Such other papers as may be requested by the clerk to the Panel.

  • the PDC should be informed as soon as possible of the decision of the Review Panel and the reason(s) given for its decision.

In determining a review the panel can make one of three decisions: they may:-