After section 411 of the Education Act 1996 there shall be inserted—
(1)The duty imposed by section 411(2) does not apply in the case of a child to whom subsection (2) applies.
(2)Where a child has been permanently excluded from two or more schools, this subsection applies to him during the period of two years beginning with the date on which the latest of those exclusions took effect.
(3)Subsection (2) applies to a child whatever the length of the period or periods elapsing between those exclusions and regardless of whether it has applied to him on a previous occasion.
(4)However, a child shall not be regarded as permanently excluded from a school for the purposes of this section if—
(a)although so excluded he was reinstated as a pupil at the school following the giving of a direction to that effect to the head teacher of the school; or
(b)he was so excluded at a time when he had not attained compulsory school age.
(5)In this section “school” means—
(a)a school maintained by a local education authority; or
(b)a grant-maintained or grant-maintained special school.
(6)This section does not apply in relation to a child unless at least one of the two or more exclusions mentioned in subsection (2) took effect on or after the date of the coming into force of section 11 of the Education Act 1997.
(7)For the purposes of this section the permanent exclusion of a child from a school shall be regarded as having taken effect on the school day as from which the head teacher decided that he should be permanently excluded.”