Independent Review Panel hearings following permanent exclusion
If the Discipline Committee decides not to reinstate a pupil following their permanent exclusion from school, parents have a right to request that the decision is reviewed by an independent review panel.
Parents may request an independent review panel hearing even if they did not attend or make a case to the Discipline Committee.
The Discipline Committee’s decision letter will explain who parents should write to in order to request a hearing. The application for a review hearing must be made within the timescale sent out in the letter.
Parents are entitled to request a Special Educational Needs (SEN) expert to be appointed to attend the review hearing and give advice on how special educational needs might be relevant to their child’s exclusion, regardless of whether the child has identified special educational needs.
The role of the independent review panel is to review the Discipline Committee’s decision not to reinstate a child in school following a permanent exclusion. They must consider the circumstances of the exclusion and the interests and circumstances of the excluded pupil, and also have regard to the interests of other pupils and staff at the school. The panel can either:
- uphold the exclusion decision
- recommend that the governing Board reconsiders their decision
- quash the Governing Board’s decision and direct that they consider the exclusion again
The review panel may only ‘quash’ the decision where it considers that it was unlawful, unreasonable or procedurally unfair.
The independent review panel cannot overturn a permanent exclusion decision or direct that a child be reinstated in school; they can only recommend or direct the Governing Board to reconsider reinstatement.