The Education (Pupil Exclusions and Appeals) (Pupil Referral Units) (Wales) (Amendment) Regulations 2024

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations amend the Education (Pupil Exclusions and Appeals) (Pupil Referral Units) (Wales) Regulations 2003 (“the 2003 PRU Regulations”).

Regulation 2 provides that these Regulations apply to exclusions which occur on or after 8 April 2024.

Regulation 3 of the 2003 PRU Regulations prescribes the local authority as the responsible body under section 52(5) of the Education Act 2002 for considering whether a pupil should be reinstated in relation to a fixed period exclusion from a pupil referral unit (“PRU”). Regulation 3 of these Regulations amends regulation 3 of the 2003 PRU Regulations to instead prescribe the management committee of a PRU as the responsible body, and in relation to both fixed period and permanent exclusions.

Regulation 4 amends regulation 5 of the 2003 PRU Regulations. It provides that the teacher in charge is also now under a duty to inform the relevant person that the relevant person, (and the excluded pupil where the excluded pupil is not the relevant person), may make representations to the management committee where a pupil has been excluded permanently. It omits the requirement for the teacher in charge to notify the relevant person of their right to appeal against a decision to exclude a pupil permanently, as these Regulations now provide that the right to appeal is against the management committee’s decision not to reinstate a pupil under regulation 7 of the 2003 PRU Regulations. Regulation 4 further provides that the teacher in charge must inform the management committee as well as the local authority if the exclusion is permanent, will result in the pupil missing a public examination or takes the total exclusions for that pupil to over five days in a term.

Regulation 5 amends regulation 6 of the 2003 PRU Regulations to make it the duty of the management committee to provide a range of information relating to exclusions to the local authority each term.

Regulation 6 amends regulation 7 of the 2003 PRU Regulations to reflect that it is the role of the management committee rather than the local authority to consider whether a pupil should be reinstated. It also extends the cases where the management committee is required to consider whether a pupil should be reinstated to include cases where a pupil has been excluded permanently. If it decides that the pupil should not be reinstated or decides not to give a direction to the teacher in charge requiring the reinstatement of the pupil, the management committee must give the relevant person a notice detailing their right to appeal against the decision.

Regulation 8 of the 2003 PRU Regulations requires the local authority to make arrangements for the relevant person to appeal against a decision of the teacher in charge to permanently exclude a pupil. Regulation 7 of these Regulations amends regulation 8 of the 2003 PRU Regulations so that the local authority is instead under a duty to make arrangements for the relevant person to appeal against a decision of the management committee not to reinstate a pupil who has been permanently excluded.

Regulation 8 adds management committees to the list of those required to have regard to guidance given by the Welsh Ministers in discharging their functions.

Regulation 9 provides that the management committee must establish facts on a balance of probabilities.

Regulation 10 amends the Schedule to the 2003 PRU Regulations to reflect that the appeal is against the decision of the management committee not to reinstate a pupil who has been permanently excluded, rather than against the teacher in charge’s decision to permanently exclude the pupil. The Schedule is also amended to provide that the management committee has a right to make written representations, to be represented and to appear and make oral representations before the appeal panel and a right to be informed of the panel’s decision.

The Welsh Ministers’ Code of Practice on the carrying out of Regulatory Impact Assessments was considered in relation to these Regulations. As a result, it was not considered necessary to carry out a regulatory impact assessment as to the likely costs and benefits of complying with these Regulations.