The law reform group Justice has called for a radical overhaul of exclusions amid concerns that too many schools do not fully understand their legal duties and that the appeal process available to parents wishing to challenge an exclusion is inadequate.
According to Justice, there are “serious weaknesses” in a system that excludes, sometimes unlawfully, a disproportionate number of pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).
In 2017/18, 45 per cent of all exclusions were of children with SEND.
Justice’s report, Challenging School Exclusions, found that schools often do not understand their duties under the Equality Act 2010 which require them to make reasonable adjustments to school policies – including zero tolerance behaviour policies – that may put SEND children at a disadvantage.
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