Castleknock Community College in conjunction with Co Dublin V.E.C. recognises its obligation to protect the rights of Principals, teachers and students and, consequently, endorses the aspiration set out in the Department of Education's "Guidelines towards a Positive Policy for School Behaviour and Discipline" (C/L 33/91) that:" Expulsion should be resorted to only in the most extreme cases of indiscipline and only after every effort at rehabilitation has failed and every other sanction has been exhausted"The Co. Dublin V.E.C. reserves to itself the sole right to expel a student from its schools and colleges. The Boards of Management have the authority to recommend the exclusion of a student to the V.E.C.Natural Justice must be adhered to in all decisions

Principles drawn from recent legislation.

1 Students have a statutory obligation to attend school up to age 16. Accordingly students have a right to attend school up to that age.
2 Having been admitted to a school, all students have the right to learn in an orderly and caring environment. All schools need to establish and maintain high expectations of student behaviour. All members of the school community should be aware of these expectations, and participate in their development.
3 All students and teachers have the right to be treated fairly and with dignity, in an environment free from disruption, intimidation, harassment and discrimination.
4 There will be cases of unacceptable behaviour where it will be in the best interests of the school community and/or the student involved, for the student to be removed from the school for a period of time or completely. Suspension and exclusion are the options available to the Principal and /or the Board of Management in these situations. [Examples of "unacceptable behaviour" are contained in the Code of Behaviour].
5 Collaboration between The Board of Management, school staff, students,parents is an important feature of Behaviour Management in schools. All should be fully aware of the suspension and exclusion procedures and their place in the context of the school's Code of Behaviour.
6 Suspension is only one strategy within a school's Code of Behaviour. It is most effective when it highlights the parents' /guardians' responsibility for taking active role, in partnership with the school, to work with their child to enable the child's behaviour to change. The school will work with parents / guardians with a view to assisting a suspended student to rejoin the school community as quickly as possible.
7 Suspension allows students time to reflect on their behaviour, to acknowledge and accept responsibility for the behaviour, which led to the suspension, and to accept responsibility for changing their behaviour to meet the school's expectations in the future. It also allows time for school personnel to plan appropriate support for the student to assist with successful re-entry.
8 The Principal has authority, to suspend any pupil for a limited period and shall report any such suspension to the Board of Management at its next meeting.
9 If, in the judgement of the Principal, a pupil should be excluded, the Principal shall refer the matter to the Board of Management / County Dublin VEC for decision.
10 The Board of Management and the Principal will exercise this authority having regard to their responsibilities to the whole school community and to the Principles of Natural Justice.
11 In implementing these procedures, the Principal and Board will ensure that no student is discriminated against on any of the following grounds:
o Gender o marital statuso family statuso sexual orientationo religiono ageo disabilityo raceo membership of the Travelling Community

12 The Board of Management will also ensure that the implementation of these procedures will take into account such factors as:
a. The age and state of health of the pupil; b. The pupil's previous record at the school;c. Any particular circumstances unique to the pupil which might sensibly be taken into account in connection with the behaviour, e.g. strained or traumatic domestic situations;d. The extent to which parental, peer or otherpressure may have contributed to the behaviour;e. The degree of severity of the behaviour, frequency of its occurrence and the likelihood of its recurring;f. Whether or not the behaviour impaired or will impair the normal functioning of the pupil or other pupils in the school;g. Whether or not the behaviour occurred on school premises or when the pupil was otherwise in the charge of the school staff or when the pupil was on the way to or from school. An important consideration in cases of doubt is the extent to which behaviour away from the school had a serious impact on the life of the school;h. The degree to which behaviour was a violation of one or more rules contained in the school's Code of Behaviour and the relative importance of the rule(s);i. Whether the incident was perpetrated by the pupil on his or her own or as a part of a group.

13 Depending on the nature and extent of the misbehaviour the support of other agencies such as the National Education Welfare Board (NEWB) or The County Dublin VEC Psychological Support Services (PSS) may be sought by the Board of Management
14 The Principles of Natural Justice are fundamental to the implementation of these procedures.

Suspension

1a. The Principal shall control the day-to-day discipline of the College. The Principal may suspend immediately in some circumstances: e.g. violence, threats of violence, presence of weapons, illegal drugs etc.
1b.Reasons for the suspension of a pupil must be linked with the Code of Behaviour, of which the student and Parents/Guardian must have copies, be familiar with its contents, and preferably have signed that they have read and understood the Code.
2. Suspension will usually only occur after the Principal has:
o ensured all discipline options under the Code of Behaviour have been applied and documented:

o ensured all appropriate support personnel (internal and external) have been involved;

o ensured that discussion has occurred with the student and parent / guardian regarding specific misbehaviour which the school considers unacceptable and which may lead to suspension;
o ensured that diagnostic assessments have been carried where appropriate ( i.e. Co Dublin VEC PSS), particularly where unacceptable behaviour is ongoing and consistent;

o (except in cases of very serious misconduct) provided a formal written warning detailing these behaviours, as well
as clear expectations of what is required of the student in the future;
o recorded all action taken, and
o copied all correspondence.

3. The following procedures will be followed:
- Suspension can only take place after consultation with, and under the authority of, the Principal/Deputy Principal or their Delegated Officer
- Parents must be informed, in writing, of the reason for the suspension, the period of the suspension and the requirements that must be fulfilled to gain reinstatement. The Principal/Deputy Principal should sign this letter.
- Parents must be informed of their right to appeal the decision to suspend and the procedures to be followed in making such an appeal. Pending the meeting of the Board to hear the appeal, the student will carry out her/his suspension.
- Pupils should not be dismissed from school until the end of the school day unless and until arrangements have been made with their parents/guardians.
3. The Principal, when internal sanctions have failed, shall bring all disciplinary matters to the attention of the Board of Management.
4. Pupils may not be suspended from the College by the Principal for any period in excess of 10 School days without first convening a Board of Management meeting and receiving its approval.
5 If a student is suspended for a period of 6 days or more, the Principal must inform the Education Welfare Officer.
6. No Board of Management may dismiss, or otherwise disbar from attendance at school, a student for more than a total of twenty-eight (28) calendar days or until the next meeting of the Co. Dublin Vocational Education Committee.

7. If a student is suspended for a cumulative total of 20 days or more in one school year, the Principal must inform the Education Welfare Officer. Furthermore the Principal must inform the Parent(s)/Guardian(s) of their right to appeal to the Board of Management where dismissal or suspension is invoked. (Section 29 of the Education Act, 1998).

8. Where a student and her/his representative fails to convince a Board of Management of their resolve to conform to a school's disciplinary code or where a breach of discipline is so grave that the Board considers it in the best interest of staff and fellow students that attendance be forthwith and

permanently forbidden then the matter must be brought to the attention of the Committee.

v In the Interim between communication to and the meeting of the Committee, the student may be given schedules of work/study to minimise any disruption of studies pending the decision of the Committee.

9. In dealing with serious cases of indiscipline the Principal and her/his staff are expected to consult all professional services available.

10. Schools should ensure that disciplinary codes are fair and reasonable and that all students/parents are fully informed and conversant with same.

11. The committee when deciding on cases which come before it will seek a report from:

(i) The Principal and/or
(ii) The Cathaoirleach of the Board of Management.

And will provide the Parent(s)/Guardian(s)Representatives with the option of representing the student.

Grounds for Removing a Suspension

Section 23 (2) d of the Education Welfare Act 2000 requires the school to publish the grounds for removing a suspension. This implies that a system is in place for review / appeal of a suspension.
Grounds may include:
· The Principal / Board may agree that another sanction be applied after discussion with the parents

· Successful appeal to the Board of Management

· Successful appeal under Section 29 of the Education Act

· New circumstances come to light

· Other grounds under GENERAL PRINCIPLES (No.10) above.

Appeals

The Principles of Natural Justice demand that there should always be an appeal to a higher authority. The practicalities of school life mean that having a formal appeal to the Board of Management on short suspensions imposed by the Principal may be inappropriate, very time-consuming, and render the suspension meaningless.
It may also be appropriate to formalise a meeting before the suspension is actually imposed, perhaps comprising of the Principal, Deputy Principal, Guidance Counsellor and the parents, in an attempt to resolve matters and / or to explain the reasons for the long suspension.
Schools may insist that the student remain at home while any appeal on a suspension is in process.
It is possible that a suspension may already be served before the appeal is actually heard. If the appeal is successful, the only remedy may then be to have the suspension removed from the student's file / record.
In general the school must, in its suspension procedures, be seen to be fair and to have practical and reasonable procedures in place.
All appeals should be heard as soon as is practically possible.

Exclusion

This is the ultimate sanction and can be a recommendation by the Board of Management in extreme cases of indiscipline.

In advance of any hearing, which could result in exclusion, the school will investigate the matter in accordance with the principles of natural justice.

Reasons for the exclusion of a pupil must be linked with the Code of Behaviour, of which the student and Parents/Guardian must have copies, be familiar with its contents, and preferably have signed that they have read and understood the Code.

Permanent Exclusion of a Student from School
Protocol & Procedures for excluding a student from school by a Board of Management
Section 24, Subsection C Education (Welfare) Act 2000 and Section 29 Education Act, 1988.

1. Case brought to the Board of management: The Board considers the issues and if exclusion is a possibility parents/guardians ought to have been invited to the Board Meeting and allowed to address the Board before they reach a decision on exclusion.

2. Decision of the Board is taken only after parents have had opportunity to make their case to the Board. If the decision is to exclude the student, this decision should be communicated to the parents/guardians in writing signed by the Secretary to the Board of Management (but not signed in her/his capacity as Principal). At the same time a letter should be issued to the National Education Welfare Board notifying them of the decision.

3. The content of the notifying letter should state that the Board has arrived at the decision to exclude the pupil and that this decision will take effect 20 days after the date of the notifying letter, Section 24, Subsections 4 & 5 of the Welfare Act. It is not envisaged that the student be retained in school for that 20 days, he/she may be on continuous suspension. The letter should also inform parents of their right to appeal the Board's decision to the Co Dublin VEC. A copy of the relevant Appeals Application Form should be enclosed.

4. The Secretary to the Board should immediately inform the CEO/Designated Officer of the decision of the Board and forward copies of Board of Management minutes and copy of letters sent to parents/guardians and National Education Welfare Board.

5. The CEO/Designated Officer then awaits a possible Section 29 Appeal.

6. If Section 29 Appeal is submitted within the time frame allowed, acknowledgement letter should be dispatched to:
a. Parent(s) /Guardian(s) making Appeal
b. Secretary to BOM of the School
c. Relevant Education Welfare Officer.

7. The CEO/Designated Officer contacts and seeks facilitation meeting with the School Principal

8. If a Section 29 Appeal is received outside of the time frame allowed, the CEO/ Designated Officer must assess the situation and decide to allow the appeal or exclude on the grounds of being outside the time frame. If a decision is made to allow the Appeal, the reasons for so allowing should be recorded so as not to set precedence for all late Appeals.

9. The date is set for formal hearing of Section 29 Appeal within 30 days of receipt of Appeal.

10.
a. Members of VEC Appeal Subcommittee notified of appeal
b. The Secretary of Board of Management, Appellant and The National Education Board simultaneously notified of date of Section 29 Appeal Hearing.

11. Appellant notified that they make a written submission to Appeal Subcommittee. The Secretary to the Board of Management also notified and request additional documentation.

12. If the documentation is received by the CEO/Designated Officer from Appellant or Secretary of Board copies of this documentation should be available to the opposite side three days in advance of the Appeal Hearing.

13. The Appeal:
a. The Secretary to the Board or a nominated Board Member representing the Board sets out the case surrounding the Board's decision to exclude the student.
b. The Appellant then sets out the grounds for their appeal - only one Person from either side presents the case

14. Either party may request a break in proceedings to discuss, with their adviser, issues surrounding the case.

15. Members of the Appeal Subcommittee may ask questions relevant to the case from either side.

16. On the conclusion of the process both parties depart.

17. The Board discusses the case and makes its determination

18. The decision of the Appeal Subcommittee is communicated simultaneously to the VEC, Appellant, and Secretary of the Board of Management and the National Education Welfare Board. The Appellant is also notified in this correspondence that the decision of the VEC Appeal Subcommittee may be appealed to the Secretary General of the Department of Education & Science.

19. Following endorsement of the subcommittee decision on the matter by the VEC, copies of documentation and case details should be forwarded to the Department of Education & Science Appeals Unit for their records and also in the event of a further appeal to them.

The Principles of Natural Justice
Procedural Fairness
Procedural fairness is a basic right of all individuals dealing with authorities. All communities have a legitimate expectation that schools (Boards, Principals and teaching staffs) will follow these principles in all circumstances, particularly when dealing with suspensions and exclusions.
Procedural fairness is generally recognised as having two essential elements.
1. The right to be heard which includes:
· The right to know why the action is happening
· The right to know the way in which the issues will be determined
· The right to know the allegations in the matter and any other information which will be taken into account
· The right of the person against whom the allegations have been made to respond to the allegations, and
· The right to an appeal.
2. The right of a person to an impartial decision which includes:
· The right to impartiality in the investigation and decision making phases
· The right to an absence of bias in the decision maker
As part of ensuring the right to be heard principals should establish if parents / guardians require an interpreter and, if so, make arrangements for one to be available.

Principals should also ensure that students and parents / guardians have access to policies and procedures under which action is being taken.

While it is generally preferable for the functions of investigating and deciding to be carried out by different people, in the school setting this may not always be possible.

If the Principal is conducting both the investigative and decision making stages, he or she must be reasonable and objective. Ultimately, the Principal must act justly and be seen to act justly. While it is difficult to combine the roles of investigator and adjudicator, given the nature of the Principal's responsibilities, there may at times be no alternative to the Principal exercising both roles.

Nevertheless, it is preferable to have another appropriate officer, such as a deputy or assistant principal, carry out the investigation, if possible.

The availability of a line of appeal to a more senior officer adds to the fairness of the process and offers a check in case there is a perception of a conflict of interest. It is the principal's responsibility to suspend a student from the particular school or to recommend to the Board the exclusion of a student from the school. This responsibility is not to be delegated to any officer other than one acting in the Principal's position.

To ensure the elements of procedural fairness are met, it is appropriate to provide student and their parents / guardians with details of all allegations relating to the incident. This usually will involve providing copies of any relevant statements. Should Principals be of the view that it is not appropriate to provide copies of statement, for example, because of a fear that witnesses may be intimidated, full details of the allegations outlined in the statements should be provided

In matters where a long suspension or exclusion is contemplated, the gravity of the circumstances requires particular emphasis being given to procedural fairness. This includes the availability of a support person/observer at formal interviews, the key features of which should be taken down in writing.
· Adapted from PROCEDURES FOR THE SUSPENSION AND EXCLUSION OF SCHOOL STUDENTS, NSW Department of Education and Training 1998