Expelled... Is the school doing right thing?

[sleepycow]

Not my child. But the children involved are from same friendship groups. Year 11 at school and one of the other pupils informed the school that two boys had smoked cannabis in the school holidays. Cue bag and phone searches, boys were made to write statements and admitted they had done so. Due to the searches others were caught out and boys in question have been expelled. This is not a private school. But is a free school.

They have not done this at school or whilst in uniform. Just seems like a huge over reaction. I don't condone drug use at all, but they are at an age where they are experimenting and probably trying to impress peers. Doesn't mean they are raving drug addicts. I just think there are better ways of dealing with this than to kick them out in their final year of school.

Are the school being unreasonable? Or do you agree they are justified.

Wilbur, do you not have to when the dreaded 'sexting' issue arises? To make sure a picture has been deleted?

“This power applies to all schools and there is no need to have parental consent to search through a young person’s mobile phone if it has been seized in a lawful ‘without consent’ search and is prohibited by the school rules or is reasonably suspected of being, or being likely to be, used to commit an offence or cause personal injury or damage to property.”

assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/674416/Searching_screening_and_confiscation.pdf

I am vehemently anti- drugs but it seems unusual to permanently exclude children for out-of- school cannabis use. Given they're yr11, if they had no previous record of bad behaviour, school could perhaps have read the riot act, notified parents (obvs), perhaps spoken to police- who might not take any action whatsoever but could send a community bobby to speak with them, excluded them for a week- and said this is your absolute final chance.
Maybe they were kids who weren't going to get great GCSEs and the school has seen an opportunity to remove them from their results statistics????

Free schools are a nightmare for many reasons. No way would I send any child of mine to one.

Have you visited many? Had direct experience?

When you say there was evidence on their phones I am thinking that possibly there may even have been social media posts, with their profile saying they are at X School and showing them doing drugs and thus bringing the school's reputation into disrepute. Or the story has been passed to you incorrectly.

I would be worried if it really is a teacher telling you this information because if they are prepared to pass this on to you what are they passing on to other people, possibly about your child.

I would take the rumours and hearsay with a pinch of salt and assume there was more to the story.

noblegiraffe
Exactly. It's very clear that schools have the power to search.
WilburIsSomePig
Noble has posted the link. Schools can search phones.
Usually though that power is only exercised by a senior member of staff (often with another member of staff present).

Not sure how this action helps anyone to be honest - I accept if it was found in school they would have to take action but this will cause possibly life time consequences for what was in effect sensible controlled drug use. It should have been treated the same as alcohol or cigarettes.

As soon as we legalise drugs the better - far less ruined lives - as proved by the sensible brave countries who are moving in this direction.

@cueominousmusic ha, actually in the garden of England! No more wild south east than west! And perhaps less exciting when I realised my middle of the night typo! Gun cartridges not carriages! And the dynamite stick thing from some boy who’s dad ran one of the local quarries

Schools should not expel based on things that happened during school holidays.

They should operate a no-tolerance policy just as workplaces do. As in no alcohol or drugs on site, no partaking in alcohol or drugs on site. Children and teens need to learn that as adults, that is what they should expect when they're in jobs and functioning in society.

On another note though, teens are going to experiment and should be PROPERLY educated in regards to drugs. Not just 'Kids, don't do drugs'. Operating an ostrich in the sand approach does not make drugs go away.

"Sensible, controlled drug use"

There is no such thing.

They should operate a no-tolerance policy just as workplaces do

Do you really believe that? So if someone got into a fight or drink driving 'outside ' work - then work can't do anything? What about posts on FB? Etc

You're talking rubbish

@GreenTulips

Thanks for raising that. I hadn't thought of that and you are correct there.

What I don't appreciate however is you saying I'm talking rubbish. The majority of that post I was making a valid point. I don't understand why, just because I managed to forget that point, why you felt the need to be rude. Or brusque. Or slightly passive aggressive.

Why not just say... actually the majority of work places can and do discipline people for outside misdemeanours.

Do you lack the eloquence to do so?

Depressing that people on here can't just inform others in a polite way.

No drugs were found in School. No drugs were used in School

Then I think the information has been changed, or there’s more to it.

@InTheNavy that was my somewhat cynical first thought - were these boys expected to hit targets? It seems a very active search for an accusation of holiday use of cannabis. If the whistleblower has stated that they were using in or straight after school, it would be more understandable.

There is probably much more to this story than OP knows though.

There is no such thing.

Yeah, there is. Not for everyone, but there is.

StrangeLookingParasite depends on the drug to be fair, weed aye I’d argue there is. Smack, no so much.

Of course there is such a thing as sensible controlled drug use. What do you imagine happens with prescription and over-the-counter drugs?

@StrangeLookingParasite

Thank God there's someone else who thinks so. I wasn't prepared to stick my head over the parapet but now you have I think I'll join you.

Strength in numbers and all that.

No point saying drugs should be banned completely, kids should be told not to take drugs and just leave it at that.
It's just irresponsible ostrich behaviour.

There is a lot more to this than you know OP. I absolutely guarantee and would bet everything I own.

Expulsion is an extremely difficult process harder than it should be. Even written admission, in the presence of a parent or carer, of use of weed during the holidays wouldn't get close to this result.

Phones could / may be checked, though

Reading back over the OP it seems to me (I might be wrong) that the original boys reported aren’t the ones expelled?

So I’m guessing dealers were uncovered during the search?