Permanent Exclusion..... Next Options

Thankyou for your reply, I am new to mumsnet and started a new thread shortly after, under the heading secondary school expulsion, perhaps better if we continue conversation over there, if you can find it.

@Myheadhurtstwo
I suggest you start your own thread.

When did this happen? Is your school not online learning now or is he in under keyworker/vulnerable?

Presumably the main issue is that your DS went beyond 'defending' into something more? (Either continued to fight after the other had stopped, or your DS threw a pre-emptive punch/whatever?)

Make sure you get clearly written down what lead up to the incident.
Make sure the younger pupil gives evidence.
Make sure any other mitigating factors are written down.

I'd also have your DS write a clear letter of contrition to the school saying how sorry he is, it won't happen again, he 'over reacted' and has learned his lesson or whatever and to please please give him a second chance.

When is the governors panel?

Hi I my DS is in year 11 and was involved in an altercation after school, he acted in defence of a younger pupil who was being bullied by someone in his year. The perpetrator has ended up the victim and the police are involved. My DS has been advised he will probably be excluded as a result of this, this is the first trouble he has got into at school and has a great track record, he has also recently just been assessed for dyslexia and it is believed he has severe dyslexic traits. He’s obviously due to complete his GCSE’s this summer term, which we all know have been cancelled and will be teacher assessed only. His current school have offered him a change schools to finish his terms, which is a big challenge for my son and he cannot go to this area as he fears he will be targeted. I am perplexed and feel overwhelmed with how best to help my child get the GCSES he needs to get an offered place at college. I want to challenge the exclusion (if it goes ahead as suggested) and am looking for advice or guidance of how best to go about this, should I get a solicitor or advocate? I don’t know where to start and time is running out.

Academically has potential but he has not responded well to a mainstream school which has a zero tolerance policy - 95% of his issues have been talking/misbehaving in class/arguing with teachers which has meant him spending 15 weeks of last 18 week in isolation - despite 38 letters I have written to school these last two terms, backed up with letters from his GP, counsellor and our local MP that this only makes his behavior and anxiety worse.

Talking, misbehaving in class, arguing with teachers are the sorts of things that done repeatedly would get most students in most schools in isolation. I don't work in a zero tolerance school but we don't acvept students arguing back and preventing others from learning.

15 weeks out of 18 seems a lot. The MP saying stuff doesn't have much weight.

I'd expect a student who was defiant and repeatedly preventing other children learning to be out of circulation. It might be working in a support base (we have a room there which is essentially isolation because isolation is just a silent classroom, but for whatever reason some of our students with SEMH work better there), on a desk near head of year's office / in a pastoral area, but they wouldn't keep being in normal lessons.

It depends what allowances you were wanting. Are we looking at exemptions from behaviour policy/sanctions? Quality first teaching strategies?
E.g. I use a range of classroom strategies to support students with SEMH issues. I love working with those students. But if they are arguing with me, being defiant or preventing others achieving then the behaviour policy applies. It can't be considered ok to keep child 1 in the room refusing to work and being disruptive whilst saying Child 2 is straight out.

To be clear if your son was excluded for persistent disruptive behaviour then the school can and will include all incidents including hitting the other pupil. However that then puts the incident in the category of "just another incident" rather than a specific incident that could be considered important enough to warrant PA in its own right. So if the school talk in the PE letter explaining the reason behind the PE as including the assault than that is serious. However if they do not mention it specifically then I would have to disagree with Soontobe60 that the PE cannot be overturned as he has assaulted a pupil. Actually the PE can never be overturned, it can only be referred back to the school for reconsideration or quashed and referred back to the school for reconsideration.

Your response reads of someone who has a negative opinion of children whose behaviour is as a result of diagnosed mental health conditions and the approach the school has applied to these children.

Sorry OP, does he have a diagnosis at the moment?
My advice as a Senco is to wait to appeal the PX as he has not yet got an EHCP, and you can't be certain at the moment what that will comprise of. The LA will have to name a school on it, you need to be discussing with the case worker what the options are. Until you have all the available information you're not able to make an informed choice.
Regarding your DS future, a managed move is a much better position for him to be in rather than a PX.
I do have to say though that regardless of his SEMH need, if he has assaulted another pupil (despite him saying he was being goaded), you're probably not going to have the PX overturned. Were the police involved?
You mentioned a psychologist. Was that through the EHCP process or did you pay privately? I only ask because in my experience, the EP reports that the parents have paid for privately that I have seen were very heavily weighted to what the parents have told the EP, rather than a balanced report based on meetings with school staff, parents, CAMHS professionals plus observations and assessments with the pupil.
EP reports make recommendations to schools and we work collaboratively with parents to draw up cycles of APDR to support the pupil. Is this what happened in your DS case?

What would prevent him behaving in exactly the same way again if they were forced to take him back? What measures do you imagine the school could put in place to mitigate the effects he’d have / has had on other pupils?

I'm torn in whether we appeal as his behaviour was unacceptable

Why was your DS excluded OP? Was there any violence involved? If so, was it a one off incident or has it happened before? Is he a danger to other students?

My DB lost an appeal against my DNephews PE as, even though the school had let him down multiple times & failed to support his needs, he was deemed a danger to other pupils. Apologies if I’m way off the mark but it’s just something to consider.

Can he go on a waiting list for WMG? You may well find some people don't turn up in September. You could also try to get it named in EHCP. I don't know what issues your son has but mine is ASD and when we went round ours they seemed to cater far better for them than your average mainstream and said they have a high proportion of ASD kids. Ours is a longer day and looked like that one is too - they do homework there. My DH works in a similar industry to you and they were very keen when he went round.

Transport try asking your LEA - never used school transport but there maybe someway they can help - you might have to pay. Or ask the school. Or if you can afford it a local taxi company may do a contract.

OP, if you have written evidence of telling the school 38 times that his SEMH needs were not being met, then I would definitely go to an IRP appeal.
Can't believe the school will be able to put that into a positive perspective.

I don't know all the rules / regs around this but around us we have a Maths and Science college - they allow excluded pupils at their discretion I believe. This looks similar by you - maybe call and ask if its of any interest:

coventry.wmgacademy.org.uk/about/

I teach in an SEMH secondary school and, in terms of GCSE we offer: English Language, English Literature, Maths, Double Science and then 3 of History, Art, PE, Media, Drama, Food Tech and IT.
These schools do exist and more should be encouraged to push themselves/their students.

I’ve hear every good things about Interhigh for the right students. And he can definitely go to a school out of borough but you will have to push.

Also, if he is close to getting an EHCP void you negotiate for a managed move rather then PEX?

Is there a secondary school with a unit attached? My DN is joining one in West Sussex in September

I was also going to say look at Interhigh - and are you sure about the 14-16 courses at local colleges not being open to him - do they actually get a choice to say no if they are a state funded entity and can meet his needs? It doesn't seem right to me when so many teens are disaffected with school and the more adult environment of a college is exactly what they need - and they should be making reasonable adjustments too. Some PRUs are excellent, others are dumping grounds - college would be a better option I think. Are there UTCs or studio schools near you (I know they are not all wonderful either but each has to be considered on its merits and if it woudl work for your ds).

If he needs 5 GCSEs Interhigh could work. If he's motivated to study on his own it could be ideal. Wolsey Hall could also be worth looking at.

I think that you need to have a further consideration of what the current school offers.
Whilst the school have made a decision to PE, you need to consider the option of going to the governors disciplinary meeting and then to an Independent Review Panel (IRP). From your posts I am reading that whilst your son has blotted his copybook more than once, that you and the school are well aware of his SEND and that an EHC Plan is in the offing. As an experienced panel member of IRPs I would have to say that I would need a lot of convincing that the school have done everything possible to make suitable reasonable adjustments for your son's SEND when they are in the process of getting an EHC Plan. You should also be aware that for an IRP you can request an SEND expert to attend and comment on how the school handle SEND and whether in your son's case they have followed the Code of Conduct. In a school with a zero tolerance regime over discipline, the SEN expert may have things to say over whether the school are making appropriate adjustments.

Unfortunately no panel can insist of a pupil being returned to the school, if they have got it badly wrong but they can quash the original verdict and insist on the governors reconsidering the case in the light of what the IRP say.
You need to think carefully whether or not your son could cope in the current school and actually whether he could cope in any mainstream school. If not I still think there is mileage in going to IRP simply because whilst you might not want him to return to the school, you may be able to get the school to reinstate which would remove the PE from his permanent record

Have you looked at Interhigh? It's an online school. Classes register and run (online) but you can also catch up if you can't make a class. Pupils can participate in class by sending messages, using a microphone to talk to class, or make private comments to the teacher, if they are shy.

It costs, I think, about £3000 per year.