Punishment
37. The principal of a State school, if satisfied that a student has behaved in an unacceptable manner, may -
- suspend the student full-time or part-time from that school for a period of 2 weeks or less; or
- impose a detention on that student.
'Suspension'
is the temporary, full-time or part-time withdrawal of a student's right to attend school for a period of two weeks or less, on the authority of the principal. Suspension is not subject to review.
"Two weeks"
means ten school days.
Suspension, under section 37 of the Act, cannot exceed ten school days without being referred to the Learning Services General Manager. A period longer than two weeks is called 'exclusion' and is covered by section 38 of the Act. Indefinite suspension or "rolling suspension", where the student is continually re-suspended for the maximum period, is illegal. The Act provides other sanctions for situations which demand a longer period of exclusion.
Suspension can be part-time, in which event the student is not permitted to attend school for certain times of the day or of the school week. Part-time suspension cannot exceed a calendar period of more than ten school days.
Suspension is imposed as a disciplinary measure and for no other reason.
Under section 10 (3) of the Act a '. . . principal may require a student not to attend a school during any day on which the student has an infestation or is suffering from any disease which, on advice from the Director of Public Health, the Secretary considers may be infectious, contagious or harmful to the health of other persons at the school'. This should not be regarded as suspension. The procedures for suspension do not apply. The procedures for this circumstance are described in the guidelines for exemption from attendance.
A school principal has the authority to suspend a student. If the principal is absent from the school, the acting principal has the authority to suspend. The authority cannot be delegated to any other member of staff. When a principal refers an application for exclusion or expulsion to a Learning Services General Manager the Learning Services General Manager also has the option of suspending the student.
The purpose of suspension is to:
- signal that the student's behaviour is not acceptable and cannot be managed within the school community;
- allow a cooling-off period and time to muster school and/or branch resources and set in motion a plan for rehabilitation;
- establish a negotiation process for the student's re-entry to the school, based on the student's achieving some explicit goals related to improved behaviour;
- ensure that the student's parents are aware of the seriousness of the student's unacceptable behaviour and are involved in the process of negotiation for re-entry; and
- protect the right of staff to work in a safe and professional environment and the right of other students to learn without being unduly disrupted or put at risk.
- Suspension should be seen as part of a plan to change the behaviour of a particular student. It should be used in the context of a school discipline policy which takes a supportive, problem-solving stance rather than a punitive one.
- A school is not obliged to provide a student with school work during suspension. It is recommended that principals provide such work, however, if they consider it appropriate to do so.
- Parents have responsibility for their children while they are under suspension. Parents need to know that their child may not attend school and that they have a responsibility to provide appropriate supervision. In a situation where parents refuse to accept responsibility for their child during suspension (by, for example, continuing to send the child to school) principals should inform the Learning Services General Manager, who may organise appropriate intervention.
- Principals should not suspend students as a penalty for their poor attendance. To do so would be not only illogical but open to abuse, in that students could then use suspension to achieve their own end of avoiding school.
- Re-admission procedures should be formally stated in the school's discipline policy, and should reinforce the seriousness of suspension.
The processes associated with suspension are statutory and therefore subject to close scrutiny. They may be challenged before the Minister, the Ombudsman or the courts. It is important in defence, therefore, that all processes be carried out in a way that conforms to these guidelines, with accuracy and attention to all aspects of the process.
- The principal must write immediately to the student’s parents or guardian. An oral communication, even face-to-face, is not sufficient. The letter must be delivered by some safe method; the onus of proof of the delivery rests with the principal. (The use of a child messenger is not considered to be a reliable way of forwarding the letter. It is often useful to telephone the parents and to follow up the phone call with a letter.)
- The letter to the student's parents should:
- state the facts and details of the suspension, including the dates;
- outline the responsibility of parents for the student who is under suspension; and
- request a parental conference at the school. (A parental conference cannot be either considered to be or represented to be a pre-requisite for the student's re-admission to school, and it should not influence the length of the suspension. The school's discipline policy should make it clear, however, that a parental conference is a normal part of the procedure for suspension and re-admission, and that it is expected parents will attend.)
- The aims of the parental conference are to:
- ensure that the parents understand the seriousness of the student's inappropriate behaviour and the need for disciplinary action;
- encourage a mutually supportive position between the school and the student's parents for the action that the school is taking; and
- devise a mutually acceptable plan for the student's re-entry to school.
- A school's discipline policy should indicate that parental conferences are a normal part of the re-entry process. Usually the conferences will take place in the school and will be mediated by the principal. Sometimes, in instances where there has been a problematic relationship between a parent and the school, the principal may find it worthwhile to call upon a third person not directly connected with the school to mediate the conference.
- If a parent continues to refuse to participate in a suspension conference, despite all the efforts of the school, the principal should contact the Teacher Learning Support Leader and enlist the support of the cluster support team. If a parental conference is still unable to be arranged, the principal should deal directly with the student. There is no power under the Act to make attendance at a parental conference compulsory, nor can it be portrayed as a condition for the student's re-entry to school.
- On the day that the suspension takes place, the principal should write a full report on the reasons for suspension, with the period of suspension clearly specified. A copy of the principal's letter to the parents should be attached to the report. Copies of the report and attached letter should be:
- placed on the school file;
- placed on the student's file; and
- sent to the Teacher Learning Support Leader.
- The principal must arrange for details of the suspension to be entered into the Suspensions Information Management System (SIMS). The suspension data is held in the department's data warehouse. The system generates an automatic letter for the principal to send to parents. A copy of this is sent to the Teacher Learning Support Leader and the Learning Services General Manager is notified of every third suspension.
- The principal may ask the cluster support team for assistance in suspension and re-entry procedures.
- When a student has been suspended three times in any one school year, the principal must refer the case to the Learning Services General Manager.
- The delivery of suspension letters is not a duty of the Cluster Support Team. Where an officer is available, however, and it seems appropriate to do so, he or she may take the student home. (This provides a neutral person to talk with the parents and the student and to report to the principal on the parents' reaction and the student's account of events.)
- There are no circumstances in which a suspension of two weeks or less, if it complies with the Education Act and these guidelines, can legally be reviewed within the Department. This means that the process is not subject to appeal.
- Appeals against suspension can be made to the Ombudsman. Such appeals are a right which some parents and senior students can be expected to pursue.
This reinforces the fact that suspension processes can be subject to close scrutiny and challenge, demanding a high degree of accuracy and attention to the Act and these guidelines.
- Principals should be aware that all documentation surrounding a suspension may be obtained by the child's parents under the Freedom of Information Act.
- The aim of the suspension process is for the principal, the student and the student's parents to negotiate re-entry to school. If a satisfactory outcome cannot be reached, the principal or the student's parents may ask for mediation from the Learning Service.
- Learning Services General Managers and Managers School Support can provide advice and counsel to principals about suspensions. The Cluster Support Team are also able to provide support.
