Fixed Term Exclusion/Managed Move

[KBlock]

NC for this as I don’t want it linking to my other posts.

Looking for advice from Headteachers/Behaviour Management Staff etc please or any parents with experience of the same.

DS(13) was put on a fixed term exclusion for 10 days, 5 days at home and then he’ll do 5 days at another local high school.

Once the fixed term has expired he will begin a managed move to the other high school and do 12 weeks on probation there and then move there permanently (subject to satisfactory performance of course).

The Head was of the opinion that a Managed Move would be best for DS as it won’t show as an exclusion on his record.

We received the official letter from school over the weekend and it says that we are required to attend a Reintegration Meeting at the original school on what will be the last day of term, but as far as we are aware and we were told over the phone by the Head, he will not be returning to the original school so we are unclear as to what this meeting would be for?

I’ve emailed the school 3 times and left messages for the Deputy Head (who is managing the move) to contact me to discuss but with no response, it seems that they have just washed their hands of DS now.

DH and I are absolutely devastated about what has happened, DS isn’t a bad kid (although I’m sure all parents say that) he’s just done something very, very stupid on impulse and this has been the result.

I have hardly left the house since it happened, I’m so heartbroken, I feel like I have a huge neon sign on my head saying “My child was expelled from school”.

Needless to say, every single privilege he enjoyed has now been removed (tech, sports clubs, pocket money, grounded etc.)

Any advice would be hugely appreciated.

I am neither a head teacher nor work in a school but you should know that you have to agree to a managed move. Unless the head has very very good grounds to exclude they can't simply do that nor can they pressure you to move as a way of getting rid of you without having to go through the process of exclusion
Read up on this childlawadvice.org.uk/information-pages/school-exclusion/ if necessary get some legal advice and then go to the meeting prepared to fight for what you want.
BTW you might also want to be honest with yourself and ds about how you got here and what happens next because it sounds like he has royaly pissed them off (not such of a one off incident?)

He must have done something quite bad for a PX, converted to a managed move. Yes, you have to agree to the MM, but not the PX. And yes, you can appeal and if their paperwork isn't up to scratch it will get overturned, but think what that may mean for him. Do you really want him to go back to a school that clearly don't want him there anymore?
You need to contact the LA for advice and support.

I will be completely honest here (totally expecting a roasting but here goes!)

Since he started in Y7 there has always been low level silly behaviour/disruption (schools words), numerous detentions and phone calls home etc. He has had support in place from the Year Mentor and is fully supported at home by DH & I and appropriate sanctions are always out in place and followed through.

He was excluded for theft of an item from an office in school, damaging the item and then lying about it until confronted with CCTV evidence.

I am not blind to him at all, I know that he is daft and does himself NO favours at times but this is a whole new level. I’ve asked him repeatedly why he did it but he just says he doesn’t know.

He has been assessed/observed for ADD/ADHD but they said he displays no traits but he has always been very impulsive, always has to touch stuff, even as a young child he was always touching things he wasn’t supposed to.

I am not trying to excuse what he has done, as there is NO excuse, he knows that stealing is wrong and has always been taught right from wrong, DH & I are decent, honest people and have brought him up the same so I have no idea where this has come from. We have also had a Police Officer come and talk to him regarding the seriousness of his actions, and we are very lucky that the Head is not pressing charges.

Even the Head & Mentor were completely shocked by what he did. And I totally understand that they cannot have him in their school any longer, but they’ve done him a huge favour giving him an MM rather than straight exclusion.

A managed move can fail. If it does, the original school will have to take him back (which I imagine is what the meeting is about).

I think you shouldn’t be too harsh on yourself. You’re clearly doing your best for him. Hopefully this will be the fresh start he needs to turn it around. How does he feel
about the move?

Former head of year. Seen lots of kids flourish under a managed move (actually teaching a current year 10 on his second MM who is doing brilliantly).

Try to see it as a fresh start

MMs that fail often mean that the child concerned tends to find themselves permanently excluded by GCSEs, as they've behaved so badly in the new school that, even when they expect some issues, they've been so severe as to make the kid's position untenable. And usually, they won't actually be wanted back, as it gives the message that you can do something serious enough to get kicked out and they'll still get taken back if they're the same at the new place. A failed MM will geerally result in absolutely zero tolerance of any misbehaviour, and often, the next step is alternative provision - which can be a hell of shock to them when they're around kids who use drugs, sell drugs, have been involved in County Lines operations, gang violence and the like.

If we're looking at something along the lines of taking a member of staff's phone or laptop and then smashing it up, that isn't being daft - that's being malicious. The only daft thing was forgetting about the CCTV - had it not been for that, he would still be screaming blue murder about how it's a stitch up and the teachers are always picking on him.

Sometimes it's just too late and things cannot be fixed - and that's what he needs to understand, that a few sorrys won't make everything go away.

Having said that, if it's part of running with a particular group or fulfilling a particular role, moving away from them might help, as long as he doesn't seek exactly the same position in the new school. Some kids (not many, admittedly, but some) use the MM as a fresh start and actually take the opportunity to stop being the kid who is always in trouble, is always a pain in the backside, is always protesting their innocence and begging their Mum to get them out of trouble.

You shouldn't' get a roasting - because he's 13. In some countries he wouldn't be considered old enough to be faced with criminal charges and I am very glad the school isn't pressing charges, it would be crazy to destroy someone's life because they stole something (in my view a criminal record should be wiped clean at 18 except for sexual/violent conduct). A pp seems to think he took the item to damage it, maybe the damage was accidental rather than deliberate? Only you know that though you say Even the Head & Mentor were completely shocked by what he did - I'd have thought they'd seen worse than a teen stealing something and lying about it.

If the deputy head is managing the move they will need to speak to you about whether the meeting is necessary (it might be more of a handover to the new school - does your son get to visit first I don't know anything about managed moves or it could just be a standard letter they've not amended). I think it's more likely that they are busy rather than they have washed their hands of your ds, and especially at Christmas. Maybe they have other challenging behaviour to deal with and your ds has gone down the priority list a bit.

Keep up the phone calls and/or emails every few days and I am sure someone will contact you before the end of next week.

A managed move can (and frequently do) fail. Your DS will remain on the roll of his current school for the duration of the MM. They should be involved in what's happening for him at the new school and if they don't suggest it, INSIST on a midpoint review for the MM with original school, new school, you and your DS sitting down together to discuss what's working well and what needs to get better. If you think he's not going to cope or isn't coping during the MM, ask for a meeting, telephone conversation or email contact each week/fortnight. Also, ensure that the targets they set are SMART so that he isn't set up to fail from the start.
If it does fail, the original school can't say he won't return. They have to take him back and they could only then PEX for another excludable issue. They may suggest alternative provision (AP) but if this is immediate and full time, OFSTED might view it as off-rolling.
This is my field of expertise so PM me if you need to.

Thank you for all your replies, you’ve all been extremely helpful.

To answer @BlaueLagune, the Head and Mentor were shocked that it was DS who had stolen, the Mentor actually cried when I went to pick him up, rather than it being the worst behaviour she’d ever seen.

The damage to the item (I’m sure you’ve guessed by now it was a phone!) occurred when he threw it to/at another pupil, he said he expected them to catch it

We have forwarded a cheque to the school to cover the cost of the phone, it was a school phone as opposed to a teachers personal phone, not that that makes it any better.

I will email and ring again tomorrow and try and speak to the Deputy Head and see where I get as he starts at the other school on Thursday morning.

Thank you again for all your help, it really is appreciated

Former SENCo and Head of Year here. I was involved in several managed moves, some of which were successful. There has to be a willingness from everyone to make it work...Its designed time be a fourteen week programme with a review half way through and regular contact between the two schools in the interim.

I would usually go and visit every couple of weeks at least, if we had one of our students moving to another school. More often if it looked as though it was becoming tricky. Some moves really were a fresh start and an opportunity to learn from previous mistakes.

They really can work. Quite spectacularly sometimes. It might be worth being really positive about it for your boy. Work on him over Christmas to support him to feel positive about it too.

Just one other thing (I'm really glad he just threw the phone to a friend and breaking it wasn't anything malicious) - you mentioned you'd stopped his sports clubs.

I just wanted to raise the possibility of you letting him go. I think having hobbies and positive role models outside school can really give teens a focus and keep them out of any more serious trouble.

I don't know if you've been watching Professional Masterchef but it's been interesting how many of the chefs said they got into it when they had no focus in their lives and last night one of them explicitly said he was getting into trouble with the police and it was working with two chefs that sorted him out. So if there is an activity he is good at, or enjoys, I think he should continue doing it. I know people say he should be punished but you have to think about rehabilitation too - I'm not soft - sitting at home bored is more likely to lead to trouble than running round a football field or athletics track.

I have no advice but I wanted to share with you that at the same age I was often called to the school because my son had been disruptive or had walked out of a lesson. It came as a shock because we thought we were doing a good job parenting. We brought him up to be polite and respectful and he wasn't . If its any consolation he did settle down. He made different friends and managed to get enough respectable GCSES to get in to sixth form.
My son was diagnosed with ADHD but you can have the condition without acting like a clown so I never used it to excuse bad behaviour. He did struggle socially and I think the group he hung around with weren't the best influence but he did eventually come to that conclusion by himself.
I hope that things work out the same way for you.

Managed moves can work well if there is a willingness from everyone to make the fresh start work.

Where they don't work as well is when there's not everyone on board, or the student goes into the managed move seeking to maintain their reputation as the "student on a managed move" and so behaves in the same way. Receiving schools will want it to work, but they will generally also not tolerate any disruption etc because they're acutely aware of officially taking a student who has already shown they won't behave. I always think managed moves are fair, but it's like an interview and they're proving to another school that they can make good choices.

The reintegration meeting is standard after a fixed term exclusion and that has to happen because unless the managed move is a success and a child officially joins the new school they remain on roll at their current school.

Managed moves can be very positive when they work out.

Re the ADHD, who observed him? Our ds, also 13, was diagnosed in the summer via a questionnaire filled in separately by us and by school. I’m not sure he’d obviously show up as ADHD under observation

He’s been in constant trouble since year 7 - nothing serious, just constant low level disruption and impulsivity/silliness. He totally fails to anticipate the outcome of his actions and he also can’t concentrate so he was constantly getting into trouble for not knowing what he was supposed to be doing. Medication has helped a lot with the concentration and a bit with the impulsivity.

He was suspended last week though for an Internet related incident which he got caught up in. He wasn’t the main instigator but he was in with the wrong crowd and ended up taking the blame. We’ve often found he’s easily led and kids will get him to do stuff that they think is funny and he ends up getting into trouble

If this sounds anything like your ds I’d try again for a diagnosis. We’ve found school are generally a little more understanding now he’s diagnosed (although not with last week’s incident!) and the medication helps a bit too.

And if it’s the case that he’s been going along with the wrong crowd, a managed move may be helpful. Good luck with it all!