PARLIAMENTARY WRITTEN QUESTION
Special Educational Needs (19 July 2018)

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the effect of removing children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) from their SEND school on the educational outcomes of such children.

Asked by:
Sir John Hayes (Conservative)

Once a pupil has been admitted to a school, they may only be removed from the admissions register in limited circumstances prescribed by regulations – The Education (Pupil Registration) (England) Regulations 2006, as amended.

Where a school asks a pupil to leave, they must follow the formal exclusions process set out in law and guidance. The guidance on exclusions is clear that headteachers should make additional efforts to consider what extra support is needed to avoid exclusion for those groups with disproportionately high rates of exclusion. This includes pupils with special educational needs. In addition to this, the guidance states that headteachers should, as far as possible, avoid permanently excluding any pupil with an Education Health and Care Plan.

In March, we will announce an externally led review of exclusions practice, led by Edward Timpson CBE. The review will consider how schools use exclusion and how this impacts on all pupils. It will focus particularly on why some groups of children are more likely to be excluded from school.

Answered by:
Nadhim Zahawi (Conservative)
24 July 2018