Big Changes to Suspension and Exclusion Guidance

Big Changes to Suspension and Exclusion Guidance: What Every School Needs to Know Before 26 July 2026

Big Changes to Suspension and Exclusion Guidance: What Every School Needs to Know Before 26 July 2026

The statutory guidance on suspension and permanent exclusion is getting a significant update — and it comes into force on 26 July 2026. That's not far off. If your school hasn't started preparing, now is the time.

This isn't just a light refresh. There are meaningful changes to how managed moves work, new requirements around parent notification, expanded expectations for governing boards, and stronger protections for some of your most vulnerable pupils. In short, there's a lot to get your head around.

We've broken it all down below — clearly, without the legal jargon, and with an eye on what it actually means for your day-to-day practice.

What's Changing and Why It Matters

1. A New Safeguarding Separation Protocol

One of the more significant new additions is a temporary safeguarding separation provision. Under the updated guidance, schools can now temporarily prevent a pupil from attending the premises when two or more pupils need to be kept apart for safeguarding reasons.

This is not a suspension. It does not go on a pupil's record as an exclusion. But it comes with strict conditions:

• The Designated Safeguarding Lead (DSL)must lead the process

• The Local Authority is responsible for arranging alternative education during the separation

• It should be used rarely, and only when the safeguarding situation genuinely requires it

This provision recognises a real gap that schools have long navigated without formal guidance. It's a welcome clarification — but schools will need to ensure their DSLs understand the process and that documentation is in place from day one.

2. Managed Moves Are Now Permanent

This is one of the most significant changes in the updated guidance.

Trial-managed moves are gone. From 26 July 2026:

• A managed move is a permanent transfer — there's no trial period

• If a school wants to offer a temporary placement elsewhere, the correct mechanism is anoff-site direction, not a managed move

• A pupil cannot be permanently excluded for refusing a managed move— this point is explicitly reinforced

• Schools must provide evidence of prior interventions before a managed move can proceed

• Data and relevant information must be shared between schools as part of the process

• All managed moves must follow the School Admissions Code

The message here is clear: managed moves are not a workaround for difficult cases. They require proper process, proper documentation, and genuine consideration of the pupil's best interests.

If your school has been using managed moves informally or as a first resort, this guidance asks you to rethink that approach — and to make sure your records reflect the interventions that came before any move was considered.

3. Enhanced Parent Notification for Off-Site Direction

For academies and PRUs, there are now stricter notification requirements when directing a pupil to an off-site alternative provision.

Parents must be notified in writing, and that notification must arrive no later than two school days before the placement begins. The written notice must include:

• The address of the alternative provision

• The person the pupil should report to

• The duration of the placement

• The reasons for the direction

• Session times

This is a meaningful shift. Schools will need to plan ahead and build this notification step into their processes — not as an afterthought, but as a standard part of the workflow. If a placement is being considered, parent communication needs to be happening well in advance.

4. Academies Now Follow the Same Rules as Maintained Schools

Following the new 2026 regulations, academies must now follow the same off-site direction procedures as maintained schools. Previously, there were differences; those differences are now resolved.

If your academy already has pupils in existing off-site placements when the guidance comes into force on 26 July 2026, transitional rules apply. Schools should review those placements carefully to understand what steps they need to take.

5. New Powers for PRU Management Committees

Under the updated guidance, management committees of Pupil Referral Units now have the power to make off-site direction decisions. This brings PRU governance in line with the wider school system and gives management committees clearer authority in complex cases.

6. Stronger Protections for Looked-After Children

The guidance puts a specific spotlight on looked-after children (LAC). When a looked-after pupil is at risk of suspension or exclusion, schools should:

• Consider requesting an interim Personal Education Plan (PEP) review

• Review the use of Pupil Premium Plus to ensure it's being deployed effectively in support of that pupil

This is a reminder that exclusion is rarely the right outcome for children who are already navigating significant instability in their lives. The guidance expects schools to exhaust every available support mechanism first — and to document that they have done so.

7. Off-Rolling — The List of Examples Just Got Longer

The updated guidance expands the list of practices that constitute off-rolling. This matters because off-rolling — moving pupils off a school's roll without a formal exclusion — is unlawful and always has been. But the new guidance makes the examples more explicit, including:

• Sending a pupil home without a formal suspension

• Placing a pupil on a part-time timetable for behavioural reasons

• Moving a pupil to alternative provision when it is not in their best interests

• Encouraging a post-16 student to drop a course against their own interests

If any of these practices are happening — even informally — they need to stop. The guidance is clear, and the accountability that comes with governing board scrutiny (see below) makes informal workarounds significantly riskier.

8. Governing Boards Must Look Harder and Further

From September 2026 (the start of the new academic year), governing boards face significantly expanded monitoring expectations. This is not just about exclusions any more.

Governors must now:

• Scrutinise all pupil movement— not only formal exclusions, but managed moves, off-site directions, and any other form of placement change

• Apply maximum challenge to school leadership on these issues

• Review safeguarding separation data, where applicable

• Benchmark performance across a broad range of metrics — attendance, attainment, curriculum, finance, safeguarding, and community engagement

For many governing boards, this will require a step change in how they approach their data review and challenge role. Schools should start preparing now to ensure the right data is available in an accessible format by September.

9. Meeting Rules — Some Useful Clarifications

The guidance also tidies up a few procedural points around the meetings that follow suspensions and exclusions:

• More than one friend or representative can now accompany families at meetings — not just one

• Academies are not required to allow LA representatives to attend unless they consent to their presence

• The Independent Review Panel (IRP)role has been redefined for clarity

• Remote meetings can be refused on safeguarding grounds— schools are not obligated to offer a remote option when there are genuine safeguarding concerns

These feel like smaller changes, but they're worth reviewing with anyone who manages or chairs these meetings.

Key Dates to Put in Your Diary

Date

What Happens

26 July 2026

New guidance comes into force

26 July 2026

Transitional rules apply for academies with existing off-site placements

September 2026

Enhanced governing board monitoring expectations begin

What Does This Mean for How You Record and Evidence Behaviour?

Here's the honest reality of all this guidance: the paper trail has never mattered more.

Whether it's evidencing prior interventions before a managed move, demonstrating that a safeguarding separation was genuinely necessary, or providing governing boards with the data they need to fulfil their new scrutiny role — schools need to be recording behaviour incidents carefully, consistently, and in a way that generates meaningful insight.

That's exactly what Behaviour Smart is built to do.

Our platform helps schools record incidents in real time, identify patterns and triggers before they escalate, and generate the documentation — Smart Plans, risk assessments, post-incident learning records — that demonstrates a school is taking a proactive, evidence-based approach to behaviour support.

For DSLs managing safeguarding separations, for SENCOs supporting looked-after children, for SLT preparing governing board reports — having a clear, auditable record of what happened, what interventions were tried, and what outcomes followed is no longer optional. It's the foundation of compliance.

Get Ready Before July

The guidance comes into force in weeks, not months. Now is the time to:

• Brief your DSL, SENCO, and SLT on the key changes

• Review any existing managed moves and off-site placements

• Check your parent notification processes for off-site directions

• Prepare your governing board for its expanded scrutiny role from September

And if you'd like to see how Behaviour Smart supports schools in recording, analysing, and evidencing behaviour incidents — including the kind of audit trails this guidance demands, https://link.behavioursmart.co.uk/widget/groups/behavioursmart-demo

We'd love to show you what it looks like in practice. We are proud to announce a landmark partnership between Behaviour Smart and CPOMS, bringing together two of the UK’s most innovative forces in school behaviour management and safeguarding. This collaboration promises to deliver a seamless, powerful solution that will empower schools across the United Kingdom to better support pupils through integrated behaviour tracking, safeguarding, and pastoral care.

For schools committed to creating safe, positive, inclusive learning environments, this partnership marks a pivotal step toward more effective, data-driven behaviour management and welfare support, all while underscoring Behaviour Smart’s leading role in the UK education sector.

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Relevant Resources and Further Reading

• What Is Behaviour Smart?
  www.behavioursmart.co.uk/what-is-behaviour-smart

• Behaviour Smart Integration Partners
  www.behavioursmart.co.uk/mis-integrations

• CPOMS Official Website
  cpoms.co.uk

• UK Department for Education: Behaviour in Schools Guidance (Feb 2024)
  gov.uk/government/publications/behaviour-in-schools-advice-for-headteachers-and-school-staff

• Wonde MIS Data Integration
  wonde.com

• UK Safeguarding Legislation Overview:
  gov.uk/government/publications/safeguarding-and-child-protection