School
Suspensions in England to Be Reserved for Serious School Suspensions in England School Suspensions in England limiting their use to the most serious cases of poor behaviour, including violence, under new guidance to be issued to schools. The reforms aim to reduce the number of pupils sent home for non-violent misconduct and instead keep them supervised on school premises.
The
updated approach, led by the Department for Education, will form part of a
wider consultation on behaviour policy to be included in an upcoming schools
white paper. The move comes amid record levels of school suspensions in England
following the Covid pandemic.
Under
the proposed framework, pupils who engage in non-violent disruptive behaviour
will increasingly be placed in “internal suspension” units, separate,
supervised settings within schools, rather than being sent home. The government
argues that this approach ensures continued learning while reinforcing
behavioural expectations.
According
to the DfE, school suspensions in England were introduced more than 40 years
ago, in a vastly different social and technological context. Today, being
suspended at home often means unrestricted access to mobile phones, social
media, and online gaming, which officials say undermines discipline and
disengages pupils further from education.
The
department stated that the reforms would align suspension practices with the
government’s stance that mobile phones have no place in schools, closing what
it described as a “clear contradiction” in the current system.
The
government stressed that the changes will not eliminate traditional suspensions
entirely. The most severe incidents, particularly those involving violence, will
still result in pupils being removed from the school environment.
“The
most serious and violent behaviour will still result in pupils being removed
from the school environment,” the DfE said, adding that the new framework would
sit alongside, rather than replace, existing at-home suspensions.
Headteachers
will retain discretion over disciplinary decisions, but school suspensions in
England will now be more clearly defined within a national framework to
encourage consistency across schools.
School
leaders and teachers' unions mostly liked the extra advice, saying it makes it
easier to understand what is expected of them when it comes to managing
behavior. Some people, on the other hand, were worried that limiting external
suspensions might make them less effective at deterring people.
PepeDi'Iasio, the general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders,
said that many schools already use internal exclusions to deal with bad
behavior without having to resort to formal suspension.
Di'Iasio
did, however, warn that changes to school suspensions in England should not
make things more difficult for administrators. He said, "It's important
that any new expectations are backed up with enough resources." He also
warned against schools having to "do more with less."
Critics
of internal suspension argue that its implementation has been inconsistent,
with some pupils placed in isolation without adequate supervision or meaningful
schoolwork. In response, the DfE said its new guidance would set clearer
expectations.
The
department said internal suspension should be a short, structured intervention,
combining supervised learning with time for reflection. The goal, officials
said, is to address disruptive conduct without severing pupils’ connection to
education.
The
change comes at a time when school suspensions in England are at an all-time
high. During the school year 2023–24, there were almost a million suspensions,
which is a big jump from the end of the Covid pandemic.
Experts
in education say that the rise is a sign of bigger problems in schools, such as
mental health issues, a lack of staff, and behavior problems that have come up
since the pandemic.
The
government says that the changes to school suspensions in England are meant to
find a balance between discipline, inclusion, and learning. This is the start
of the consultation process on the white paper.
Also Read :- Education Excellence Magazine for more inforamtion