Excluded from school wraparound care

[Dominoesooohoooo]

Hi all - just wondering if anyone knows if a child can be excluded from wraparound care offered at the local school for repeated acts of violence to staff and other children. To be clear this is not a proposed exclusion from the school - just of the childcare service. Particularly interested in answers based on Scotland. It appears exclusion is generally not a common path but everything I see is in relation to school exclusion (and it may be that WAC is considered to be the same?) but I see that as different as the childcare service is not mandatory or educational and is a voluntary and a paid service.

The WAC may be run by an external private company in the school building so can set their own t&c to access the services they offer.

Yes, they can. The school has the obligation to provide an education for a child but they are not obligated to provide WAC therefore can refuse.

If my child were at the wrap around school facility and another child was being violent towaeds them, I would expect that child to be excluded. It's about the safety of the other children and staff more than any ventured rights of the violent child.

I’m not sure if it’s exclusion in the same way necessarily but we were asked to remove my son from after school club because he couldn’t cope and was becoming aggressive towards others.

We’ve also been asked to take short breaks from breakfast club, and collect him early from school when his behaviours have heightened to a certain point.

He still doesn’t go to after school club now. He was in EYFS when we took him out, and he’s now 9.

They can. In fact I would have though more easily than school. The authority would expect all children to be in school and therefore have an obligation to provide all children with a school place. Legally (I know it often doesn't happen) if they allow a school to exclude a child, they should provide another school place for that child to continue their education. Children aren't required to be in wrap around care and the authority is not required to provide wrap around care for all children. Therefore, if a child is kicked out of wrap around care, the school can legally just expect the parent to find other care, and if they can't, that's the parents' problem!

The after school club has a duty of care towards all of the children's wellbeing.

Your son can be excluded if his behaviour is causing distress to the other children there - and it sounds very much like it is.

It's not school. It's an optional after school club.

Why is your child behaving like this? Shouldn't you be focusing on how to resolve his behaviour not complaining that the after school club won't take a violent child?

Yes, children can be excluded but you should have received a meeting with the Responsible Person, a written letter and support before the exclusion. Exclusion is the last resort if there has been no improvement or a child has hurt another child.

Where does the OP state that it is her child she is talking about or that the child is male or that she is complaining about anything?

Yes they can. The WAC service has a duty of care to the other children in their care and they have to safeguard the staff they are working with. If a child can't behave and is putting the other children and staff at risk, better get rid than risk anything bad happening.

Yes, they can. No childcare setting needs to take a child, they’re privately run businesses and as long as they are being discriminatory against a protected characteristic then they can exclude, but even with that, they can still exclude people with a protected characteristic if they cannot meet their needs. Protecting other children from their violence would come under “unable to meet their needs.”

Thanks Rainbowunicorn. My child is actually one of the ones at risk of the other child.

They should have a behaviour policy to see. They have a duty of care to all staff and children for safety.

I would have thought that they could yes.
Even if it’s run by the local authority (as opposed to a private provider like my daughters asc is) they are under no legal obligation to provide wraparound in the first place.

Yes - they can. Children have a legal right to education. This does not extend to wrap around childcare. Even more so if this is managed by a private company. They can impose their own policies and procedures.

Are you going to come back and apologise to the OP @Lindy2 ?

I’m in Scotland and yes they can, my son was excluded from his in p7 for similar reasons

Am not in the UK but are these service not required to have policies around behaviour and how repeated incidences are dealt with, with steps leading up to possible exclusion?

I’m only familiar with the regulations in England, but here it would be much easier to exclude from wraparound care than from school. Children are entitled to an education and if excluded have recourse to appeal and must be provided with an alternative. But there’s no entitlement to wraparound care and so they can set their own terms & conditions and exclude if they are not met.

I don’t know about exclusions, but wraparound care at DCs school refused him attending as he has ASD and they said they couldn’t meet needs. From hearing from other parents with similar children it’s very common to be refused so I doubt it would be difficult for them to refuse the child if he’s attacking staff/kids.

I’m not in Scotland but yes a child can be excluded from wrap around care, even with a statement (as I think it is in Scotland) as it’s not compulsory schooling.

They most certainly can, check the policies for your provider, it should be in there. Have you spoken to them about your concerns?

Why should they? I thought it was the OPs child too till I read the comments, and I am still not convinced it isn't their child. I am also not sure why they are posting on MN rather than just removing their child from the setting.

It was nasty, aggressive and a bit sexist too! Talk about jumping to conclusions and running away with your own story 🙄

The OP didnt specify who the child belonged to so its possible to surmise that OP was the parent. No need to apologise imho

She didn't just assume, she was rude with it.