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Education and Skills Bill

I understand the sentiment articulated by my noble friend Lord Elton, which would allow pupils to participate in the exclusion process, because exclusions should be taken very seriously, and it is therefore right that the pupil is treated fairly. Therefore, I support part of the intention behind the amendments of the noble Baroness, Lady Walmsley. I was very pleased during the debate on the previous amendment when my noble friend said that when a child was excluded he strongly agreed that the child should not go back into the school, because there is a wider picture, not just about the children who are excluded, but about the right of the other children in the school to a good education. One of the most important things that we must do if we are to make a success of extending time in education is to engage children when they are young so that they are enthused by learning. To engage them, it is necessary to have an enthusiastic teacher who can devote time and energy to children who may be struggling, and an atmosphere in the classroom which allows learning to take place. Sadly, poor pupil behaviour is the most serious problem preventing teachers doing their job and is one reason why most good teachers leave the profession. Classrooms in which students are disruptive are environments in which no one can learn. Some pupils feel that they can defy teachers with impunity, disrupt the classroom and make it impossible for the whole class to learn. In many of the country’s schools, pupils cross the boundaries that define good behaviour. If we are to expect teachers to be able to maintain effective discipline, they must be able to resort to an effective deterrent—the threat of expulsion from the school. Yet head teachers frequently express their frustration that they have no ultimate deterrent and pupils do not take exclusions seriously, because excluding pupils on a permanent basis often turns out to be no such thing. Excluded pupils can appeal against the decision and often end up back in school. The right of appeal to an independent appeals panel administered by the local authority can be expensive, time-consuming and stressful for the head teacher. One-in-four appeals are won by the appellant and half of the children return to their original school. It is extremely demoralising for the whole school, for children and teachers, who find themselves unable to punish effectively some students whose behaviour may have been seriously threatening or upsetting. It causes continued disruption to the classroom and contributes to a decline in standards when children who have behaved so badly are allowed to continue with what they were doing, with the added triumph of having defeated the school’s authority when an appeal panel overturns a head teacher’s decision. I should like to see head teachers being allowed to run their schools effectively and for their rulings on serious disciplinary matters to be respected.