Behaviour, Suspension, Alternative Provision and Reintegration
Behaviour systems must comply with safeguarding, SEND, equality and reintegration duties. Part-time timetables are not a behaviour management shortcut — and exclusion should never be the first response to unmet need.
Reviewed against Behaviour in Schools · KCSIE 2025 · Exclusions Guidance · Ofsted EIF 2025 · May 2026
Why this matters
The intersection of behaviour, safeguarding and SEND is where some of the most serious institutional failures happen. A child who is repeatedly suspended may be communicating unmet need, trauma, exploitation, domestic abuse or neurodivergence — not choosing to misbehave. A school that responds with sanctions alone, without a safeguarding lens, risks excluding a child who needs protection.
What the guidance expects
- 01Part-time timetables are not a behaviour management tool — they are exceptional, time-limited and require LA notification. (Exclusions Guidance)
- 02Reasonable adjustments and SEND duties must be considered before any exclusion decision. (SEND Code / Equality Act)
- 03Reintegration must be planned — not just assumed when the child returns. (Exclusions Guidance)
- 04The DSL should be involved in decisions about serious or persistent behaviour. (KCSIE 2025)
- 05Alternative provision placements must be quality-assured — schools retain safeguarding responsibility. (KCSIE 2025)
Add DSL review to serious behaviour cases
When a pupil reaches a third or fourth suspension, the DSL should be present in the conversation — not just notified. What does the safeguarding file say? What does the SEND file say? What is happening at home?
Check for unmet SEND or mental health need before exclusion
Before any exclusion decision: has a SEND assessment been considered? Has the Equality Act been applied? Has a mental health referral been made? These are legal duties — not optional considerations.
Create a reintegration meeting template
Reintegration is not the child returning to the same environment that excluded them. It requires a meeting, a plan, a support structure and a named adult. Without that, re-exclusion is likely.
Record the purpose and support plan for any off-site direction
Part-time timetables: if a child is attending less than full time on a repeating pattern, that requires LA notification and a clear educational rationale. It cannot be used to manage a challenging pupil informally.
Monitor suspension patterns by cohort
Analyse suspension data by ethnicity, SEND status, FSM eligibility and sex. Disproportionality is a safeguarding and equality issue — and an explicit focus under the Ofsted renewed framework.
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