Exclusion from school

Exclusion is when a child is sent home from school and not allowed to return. Usually this is only for a fixed number of days – this is known as a ‘temporary exclusion’ or 'suspension’, 

In very rare circumstances your child may be removed from the register – this is known as a permanent exclusion or being ‘expelled’. If this happens the local authority will work with you and your child to find another school or alternative education.

A school can only exclude a child if:

• their parents or carers don’t comply with the school rules, or let their child comply with the school's rules, or
• allowing the child to continue attending school would seriously harm the order and discipline in the school or the learning or wellbeing of the pupils.

The school must consider how the exclusion will affect the child, and be sure that they’re not treating them unfairly or discriminating against them. You can find a list of all the things the school should consider before excluding a pupil in the National Guidance on exclusion. Each local authority should also have an exclusion policy you can see.on their website.

There’s no maximum time length for exclusion, but it must be for as short a period as possible, to allow the situation to calm down, or to put plans in place to support the child when they return to school, in order to address their behaviour. In some situations, the school may need to carry out a risk assessment before your child can return to school. During and after the exclusion period, the school should work with you and your child to resolve the situation.

If a school decides to exclude your child (aged under 16), they must let you know on the day they make the decision, and the decision must be confirmed in writing. If your child has legal capacity (usually if they're 12 or older but can be younger) they must also be informed in writing of the exclusion and of their right of appeal.

The school must make sure that it’s safe for your child to leave school and go home – for example, they should check that you can pick them up or they can get home safely, 

They should let you know:

• why they’re being excluded
• when you can meet with the school to discuss the decision (this must be within the next 7 days)
• any conditions, if any, which you or your child will need to comply with before your child can be re-admitted
• how to appeal the decision. 

Throughout the process, the views of you and your child must be taken into account. 

The school must also record the exclusion and inform the local authority. If you have a family social worker, or other agencies working with your child, they must also be informed. 

Before returning to school, you and your child will be invited to a Return to School meeting. This meeting will: 

• look at what led to the exclusion.
• agree any changes or help your child needs.
• plan for a safe and positive return to learning.

If you feel nervous about meeting with the school, you could ask a friend or family member to come to the meeting with you. You could also ask someone from a voluntary organisation or a professional who works with your child. 

If you don’t feel confident speaking at the meeting you could also ask someone from a voluntary organisation to speak on your behalf – this is known as ‘advocacy’. 

The school should suggest sources of support or advocacy, but if you aren’t sure where to turn, you can get in touch with Enquire. They can direct you to organisations in your area who can help.

No. The school should not be sending your child home ‘informally’ or to ‘cool off’ because of their behaviour, without recording this as an exclusion. This is an ‘unlawful exclusion’. It means the school isn’t going through the correct process (like meeting up with you, recording the decision and allowing for an appeal). You might think this is better, because the exclusion won’t go on their record (see below), but it also means they may not get the support they need to help them with their behaviour.

If your child is sent home ‘informally’, you should tell the school they can’t do this, and they must go through the correct procedure. 

The school must take extra steps before deciding whether to exclude your child if they: 

• have additional support needs
• are care experienced
• are on the Child Protection Register.

These extra steps can include speaking with other professionals before making any exclusion decision and ensuring the right support is in place.

• The Enquire website has more information about exclusions if your child has additional support needs
• Care experienced young people can get help and support from Who Cares? Scotland.
• Foster carers can get support from the Fostering Network.

While your child is out of school, the school has to provide education for them, so they don’t fall behind. This should be in place as soon as possible after exclusion. Education could  involve sending them work to do at home and some contact between your child and the school (for example, by phone, email or video call). It’s not enough to provide children and young people with homework or classwork without enough teaching to help them understand the material.

If your child gets support from outside agencies in school, such as counselling, mentoring or therapy, this should carry on while they're excluded. They might need to get this support somewhere other than the school during that time. 

The school should also work with you on a plan to support them on their return. This could include:

• arranging for them to see a counsellor or get other support
• having a regular review meeting with you
• adjusting their timetable for a short while.

You may well be feeling angry, embarrassed or judged by the school’s decision. But it’s important to keep in touch with them. They’ll want to work with you to make things better, so your child can return to school as soon as possible.

In the unlikely event that your child is permanently excluded, your local authority has a duty to arrange a new school or place of education for your child. 

Yes, exclusions are recorded on your child’s school record, which the school keeps for 5 years after they leave. Your child’s school record is confidential, but you can ask to see it – the Parentzone Scotland website explains how. 

No one else (including colleges or universities or future employers) can ask to see your child’s school record.

The school should let you and your child know how to appeal against their decision to exclude your child. If they don’t, you should get in touch with your education authority and ask them what to do. 

If your appeal is successful, the exclusion will be removed from your child’s school records.

You can find out more about appealing on the Enquire website.

If your child keeps getting excluded, it’s a good idea to contact the school and ask them to review how your child is being supported. See ‘Help meeting the school’ above if you feel you need help with this.

If you need to take time off to be with your child, talk to your employer about what they can do to make this easier for you. For example, you may be able to work more flexibly, or take parental leave. Visit the ACAS website for more information on making a request to work flexibly and unpaid parental leave.

If you’re worried about your child being excluded, you can get further help from the following organisations:

• Enquire provides advice and information to parents and carers whose children need additional support for learning, and has a helpline you can call.
• An adviser at your local Citizens Advice Bureau can talk you through your rights and help you plan how to talk to the school.
• The Scottish Child Law Centre provides free and confidential legal advice about Scots law relating to children and young people.
• YoungMinds have a helpline and webchat and email service for parents if you’re concerned about their mental health.
• Children 1st’s support line can help with all kinds of parenting issues.

Your child’s school should also suggest local organisations who can help. 

Children can react in all kinds of different ways to being excluded. They may be angry, upset, anxious or they may act as if they don’t care. The most important things you can do to support them are to keep trying to talk them and let them know that you’re there for them. 

You could also suggest they talk to another trusted adult, or from an organisation like Childline or The Mix. Childline also has helpful advice for children and young people who have been excluded.

It’s also important to support them as much as you can to keep learning while they’re off school. This isn’t always easy, but our pages on supporting your child’s learning and supporting your teen’s learning have tips to help.

Dealing with this kind of situation is stressful. Make sure you have someone to talk to, whether that's a friend, family member, or a support service. Our page on mental health advice for parents can guide you to sources of support.