Exclusion of pupils : duty to inform parents, management committee and local education authority
5.—(1) Where the teacher in charge of a pupil referral unit excludes any pupil for a fixed period, the teacher in charge shall, as soon as practicable, inform the relevant person of the following matters—
(a)the period of the exclusion;
(b)the reasons for the exclusion;
(c)that the relevant person may make representations about the exclusion to the management committee; and
(d)the means by which such representations may be made.
(2) Where the teacher in charge of a pupil referral unit excludes any pupil permanently or decides that any exclusion of a pupil for a fixed period should be made permanent, the teacher in charge shall, as soon as is practicable—
(a)inform the relevant person, the local education authority and the management committee of the decision and the reasons for it;
(b)if the pupil resides in the area of a different local education authority, in addition, inform that local authority of the decision and the reasons for it; and
(c)give the relevant person notice in writing of the decision stating the following matters—
(i)the reasons for the decision;
(ii)that the relevant person may make representations about the decision to the management committee;
(iii)the means by which such representations shall be made.
(3) Where the teacher in charge of a pupil referral unit excludes any pupil for a fixed period in circumstances where the pupil would, as a result of the exclusion—
(a)be excluded from the pupil referral unit for a total of more than five school days in any one term, or
(b)lose an opportunity to take any public examination,
the teacher in charge shall, as soon as practicable, inform the local education authority and the management committee of the period of the exclusion and the reasons for it.
(4) The teacher in charge shall in each relevant term—
(a)inform the management committee and local education authority of any relevant exclusions which do not fall within paragraphs (2) or (3) and in respect of each such exclusion provide details of the period of the exclusion and the reason for it; and
(b)unless the teacher in charge has already done so, inform the management committee and the local education authority of any exclusions occurring during any previous terms and in respect of each of those exclusions provide details of the period of the exclusion and the reason for it.
(5) In paragraph (4)—
(a)“relevant exclusion”, in relation to a relevant term, means an exclusion which first takes effect in that term;
(b)“relevant term” means—
(i)where in the school year of a pupil referral unit there are three terms or fewer, each term;
(ii)where in the school year of a pupil referral unit there are more than three terms, any term during which a reference date falls.
(6) In paragraph (5), “reference date” means 31st December, Easter Monday and 31st July.
(7) For the purposes of paragraph (5)(b)(ii), if a reference date does not fall during a term, the reference to the term during which the reference date falls is to be taken as a reference to the term which last preceded that date.