My child has been suspended or excluded from school

How long

Your state and your school district decide how long a suspension can be, whether a hearing is held and how long you have to appeal: the written notice or the district's student handbook gives the date, and that date wins. No federal date applies to an appeal. The federal floor for a suspension of 10 days or less is notice of the charges and a chance to give your child's side, usually before your child is sent home, or as soon as practicable afterwards if your child's presence is a danger or a disruption.

Starts

the day the school tells you or your child about the suspension, or about the charge that may lead to one. Ask the same day for the written notice and the district's appeal steps.

If missed

The appeal date belongs to the district and can come soon. If it has passed, ask the district in writing the same day whether it will hear a late appeal, and call legal aid or your state's disability rights agency. Do not assume the right is gone.

It lets you

ask the school or district, in writing, for the charges, the evidence, the written suspension notice and the appeal steps, and give your child's version at the first meeting, in writing if you can. For a longer suspension or an expulsion your state and district may give a formal hearing; the Supreme Court said these may need more formal procedures. Ask for that hearing in writing the same day. If your child has a disability, federal law adds protections (see the next clock).

Where this differs: State law and district policy decide almost everything else, so no state number is given here. This covers public schools. A private school follows the contract and handbook you signed: read them.

Checked 10 October 2026 at Goss v. Lopez, 419 U.S. 565 (1975), via Cornell Law School

How long

Within 10 school days of the district's decision to change your child's placement (a removal of more than 10 school days in a row, or a pattern of removals that adds up to more than 10 in the school year), the district, you and the relevant members of your child's IEP team must meet and review your child's file. From the eleventh school day of removal in a school year, the district must provide services, to the extent the rules require.

Starts

the day the school district decides to change your child's placement because of a violation of the code of student conduct. A removal of more than 10 school days in a row is a change of placement; a series of removals that totals more than 10 school days in the school year can be one too, if they form a pattern. On that day the district must tell you and give you the procedural safeguards notice.

If missed

If the district skips the review or runs it late, ask for it in writing and say you will ask for a due process hearing if it is not held. While an appeal is pending, your child stays in the interim alternative setting until the hearing officer decides or the removal period ends, whichever comes first, unless you and the district agree otherwise: an appeal does not by itself bring your child back. A due process complaint generally has to be about something you knew or should have known about not more than 2 years ago, or the shorter or longer period your state sets: do not wait, because the removal itself can be over in days.

It lets you

ask the meeting to decide whether the conduct was caused by, or had a direct and substantial relationship to, your child's disability, or was the direct result of the district's failure to carry out the IEP. Give the team your own information: the review must consider relevant information you provide. If the conduct is found to be a manifestation, the district must do a functional behavioral assessment (or review the behavior plan) and return your child to the placement they were removed from, unless you agree to a change. The district can still move a child to an interim alternative setting for up to 45 school days whatever the finding if the child carried a weapon, had illegal drugs, or caused serious bodily injury at school. If you disagree with the placement decision or the finding, you can ask for an expedited due process hearing by filing a due process complaint: the hearing must happen within 20 school days of the complaint, and the hearing officer decides within 10 school days after it. A child who has no IEP yet is still covered if, before the behavior, you told a teacher or school administrator in writing that your child needs special education, or you asked for an evaluation, or staff raised specific concerns about a pattern of behavior with the district's special education director or other supervisors. That protection does not apply if you refused an evaluation or services, or your child was evaluated and found not to have a disability. If none of that applies, you can still ask in writing for an evaluation now: during a disciplinary removal it must be done quickly.

Where this differs: Federal law (IDEA), run by your state and district: the state decides which office hears the complaint and may add rules. A child with a Section 504 plan but no IEP: federal rules require the district to evaluate the child before any significant change in placement, and a long suspension or an expulsion can be one. Ask in writing for that evaluation before the change, and ask a legal aid office, your state's disability rights agency or the Office for Civil Rights.

Checked 10 October 2026 at 34 CFR 300.530 (IDEA discipline), via Cornell Law School

How long

180 days. OCR says a complaint must ordinarily be filed within 180 days of the last act of discrimination.

Starts

the date of the act you complain about, such as the suspension or a refusal to give your child a disability accommodation. OCR counts from the last act of discrimination, but if there was a series, count from the first to be safe.

If missed

OCR can grant a waiver if you show good cause why you did not file within 180 days, so ask. If you use the school's own grievance process first, file with OCR within 60 days after it ends, and do not let it carry you past the 180 days: you can file with OCR while it is still running.

It lets you

file a complaint with the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) if you think a school that receives federal money discriminated against your child because of disability, race, color, national origin, sex or age. You do not have to use the school's own complaint process first. It is separate from an IDEA hearing.

Where this differs: Federal. It reaches schools that receive federal money; it does not cover a private school that gets none. Your state may have its own civil rights agency with its own date: ask a legal aid office or your state's disability rights agency.

Checked 10 October 2026 at US Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights (How to file a discrimination complaint)

How long

For the first 5 school days your letter names (or fewer, if other full-time education starts sooner or the suspension ends sooner), a child of compulsory school age must not be in a public place during school hours without a good reason, such as a medical appointment: that is on you as the parent. If the suspension is longer than 5 school days, counting suspensions that follow straight on from each other together, or the exclusion is permanent, full-time education must start from the sixth school day.

Starts

the day the school tells you. It should tell you as soon as possible and then write, giving the reason, how long your child is excluded and how to challenge it. An exclusion can start the same day. The letter names the days that count.

If missed

A parent who fails without a good reason to keep a child out of public places on those days may be given a fixed penalty notice or be prosecuted. A good reason can be something like a medical appointment. If education is not arranged by the sixth school day, or you are not happy with it, complain to the school (for a suspension) or the local council (for a permanent exclusion), then to the Department for Education if you are not satisfied with the reply; you will need to show you followed their complaints procedure.

It lets you

ask for the decision in writing and for the plan for education. For a suspension of 5 school days or fewer, the school should set and mark work. For a longer suspension the school must arrange suitable full-time education from the sixth school day (for example at a pupil referral unit); for a permanent exclusion the local council must. The school or council must tell you what it arranges, and you must make sure your child goes. A child can be suspended for no more than 45 school days in one school year, even if they change schools. A school may not send a child home 'to cool off' without the formal process, which includes writing to you: if that has happened, raise it with the head teacher and then use the school's complaints procedure. A meeting before your child goes back is good practice, but if you cannot attend it must not stop your child returning.

Where this differs: England only; it covers local-authority schools, academies and pupil referral units. In Wales the school must set work from the start of a fixed-term exclusion and the council should arrange full-time education from the sixteenth school day of a permanent exclusion (see the Wales clock). In Scotland the council must provide education while a child is excluded. In Northern Ireland the school sets work for a suspension and the Education Authority arranges education after an expulsion.

Checked 10 October 2026 at GOV.UK (Behaviour in schools: exclusions)

How long

Write to the governing board today: the government's guidance gives parents no date for writing, but the board's time is short. For a permanent exclusion, a suspension that takes your child's days out of school this term above 15, or one that makes your child miss a public exam or national curriculum test, the board must meet within 15 school days of being told. For a suspension that takes the term's total above 5 and up to 15 school days, the board must meet within 50 school days, but only if you make representations. If your child will miss a public exam or test, the board must try to decide before the exam date: tell the board the date in writing today.

Starts

the day the school tells you. The governing board counts its own time from the day the head teacher tells it, which can be the same day or a little later, so count from the day you are told.

If missed

If you send nothing for a suspension of more than 5 and up to 15 school days, the board is not required to meet and cannot bring your child back. 50 school days can be longer than the suspension, so write at once. For a permanent exclusion the board must meet and decide whether you write or not, and you can still ask for an independent review afterwards (see the next clock).

It lets you

make your case to the governing board in writing, and in a meeting where the board must hold one. In a meeting you have the right to attend, to bring a friend or a representative (at your own expense) and to ask for the meeting to be held remotely; your child can be heard too. Ask for the school's written evidence and the records about your child's special educational needs before the meeting; the board should circulate them to everyone at least 5 school days ahead where it can. The board can bring your child back or decide not to, and must tell you its decision and the reasons in writing. For a suspension of 5 school days or fewer, the board must read what you send but cannot bring your child back and is not required to meet you.

Where this differs: England only: local-authority schools, academies and pupil referral units. Wales has a discipline committee with its own meeting times (see the Wales clock). In Scotland the council decides and you can refer the decision to an appeal committee. In Northern Ireland a suspension is handled by the Principal and the Chair of the Board of Governors, and the Department of Education says there is currently no independent appeal against a suspension.

Checked 10 October 2026 at Department for Education (School exclusions: a guide for parents)

How long

15 school days, counting only days the school is open for lessons; if you are unsure about a day, count it. The letter must give you the last date: the date in the letter wins.

Starts

the day the governing board's decision letter is given to you: the same day if it is handed over, or the second working day after posting if it is sent by first-class post. Count from the date on the letter to be safe, and count that day as day 1.

If missed

The council or trust must reject an application made after the 15 school days, and the school then takes your child's name off its register. If you have missed it, there is one later route: if you bring a discrimination claim about the exclusion, you can apply within 15 school days of that claim being finally decided. Get advice the same day before you count on it. If your child is still excluded, you can ask the Local Government Ombudsman (or the Department for Education, if the school is an academy or free school) to look at whether your case was handled properly; they cannot overturn the exclusion. The council's duty to arrange education from the sixth school day does not depend on your appeal.

It lets you

ask your local council (or the academy trust, if the school is an academy) for an independent review panel, in writing, saying why you disagree and, if it matters, how your child's special educational needs are linked to what happened. In the same application, ask for a special educational needs (SEN) expert to attend, whether or not the school has recognised that your child has SEN; it costs you nothing. You can ask for a remote hearing and bring a friend or a representative. You can ask even if you did not go to the governors' meeting. The panel can uphold the decision, recommend that the governing board think again, or quash the decision and direct the board to think again; it cannot itself put your child back in the school.

Where this differs: England only. Wales has an independent appeal panel with its own 15 school days (see the Wales clock). In Scotland you refer the decision to an appeal committee, then to the sheriff (see the Scotland clock). In Northern Ireland you appeal an expulsion to the Expulsions Appeals Tribunal. There is no independent review panel for a suspension in England.

Checked 10 October 2026 at Department for Education (School exclusions: a guide for parents)

How long

6 months, counting the day of the act as the first day: the tribunal must receive the claim by 5pm on the day before the same date 6 months later. For a suspension on 23 September, that is 5pm on 22 March. If that day is a weekend or bank holiday, it is 5pm on the next working day, but aim for earlier.

Starts

the day of the act you complain about, such as the suspension, a reduced timetable or a refusal to make an adjustment. For a permanent exclusion the tribunal counts from the final decision in the process, but count from the day your child was first excluded to be safe.

If missed

The tribunal can accept a late claim only in exceptional circumstances with strong reasons you set out in the claim form, so do not plan on it. Because a permanent exclusion is counted from the final decision, a claim made after a governing board or review panel decision may still be in time even when 6 months have passed since the first exclusion: ask the tribunal, or an adviser, the same day.

It lets you

make a claim to the First-tier Tribunal (Special Educational Needs and Disability) if you think your child was treated unfairly because of a disability. The tribunal looks at whether the exclusion or suspension was justified and whether adjustments were made; it cannot award money, but it can order a reasonable solution, including reinstatement after a permanent exclusion. Claims about permanent exclusion are treated as urgent. For other kinds of discrimination (for example race or sex) the claim goes to the county court, which also works to 6 months and can in some cases extend it. If your child is past school leaving age (the end of the school year in which they turn 16), they make the claim themselves and can name you as their helper. Trying mediation first does not stop the clock: the claim must still be received in time.

Where this differs: England only: the tribunal cannot hear claims against schools in Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland. In Wales the Education Tribunal for Wales hears disability discrimination claims about fixed-term exclusions, and the independent appeal panel hears them for permanent exclusions (see the Wales clock). In Scotland the First-tier Tribunal for Scotland hears these claims, and in Northern Ireland the Special Educational Needs and Disability Tribunal or, for an expulsion, the expulsion appeal: see those clocks.

Checked 10 October 2026 at HM Courts & Tribunals Service (A guide for how to claim for disability discrimination: SEND4)

How long

15 school days. Do not write to the council that you will not appeal until you have had advice: that notice is treated as final. The committee's letter, and a letter from the council within 3 working days of the hearing, must give the latest date: the date on your papers wins.

Starts

the day the discipline committee gives you its written decision to uphold a permanent exclusion: the day it is handed over, or the second working day after posting by first-class post. Count from the date on the letter to be safe, and count that day as day 1.

If missed

An appeal made after the latest date should be rejected by the local authority, so if you may be late, write to the council at once and get advice the same day. A complaint about how the discipline committee ran the process can go to the Welsh Government, which cannot overturn the exclusion. After a fixed-term exclusion of a primary-school child, or of a secondary-school child for 6 or more school days, the headteacher must ask you to a reintegration interview, with the notice in writing: go, or give a reasonable excuse, because a court that is deciding whether to make a parenting order must take into account a failure without reasonable excuse to attend.

It lets you

appeal to an independent appeal panel by written notice that sets out your grounds, and any claim of discrimination, in the notice itself. You can appeal even if you did not go to the committee's meeting. The panel can uphold the exclusion or overturn it and direct that your child goes back. Before that, for a permanent exclusion or fixed-term exclusions totalling more than 15 school days in a term, the discipline committee must meet between the sixth and the fifteenth school day after it receives notice, and you and your child, if aged 11 or over, can make representations. For exclusions totalling more than 5 and up to 15 school days in a term, it must meet between the sixth and the fiftieth school day if you say you want to make representations; for 5 school days or fewer it must read what you send but cannot direct reinstatement. While an appeal is running, your child stays on the school's roll and the school stays responsible for their education; the council should arrange full-time education from the sixteenth school day. For a fixed-term exclusion you think was discriminatory because of a disability, a claim goes to the Education Tribunal for Wales, which must receive it within 6 months of the alleged discrimination.

Where this differs: Wales only. This is the Welsh Government's guidance on exclusions. England, Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own routes and dates: see their clocks. The Education Tribunal for Wales cannot deal with permanent exclusions from maintained schools; the appeal panel does.

Checked 10 October 2026 at Welsh Government (Exclusion from schools and pupil referral units, guidance 2024)

How long

The council must offer you a meeting within 7 days of the decision, and must write to you within 8 days. Do not tell the council you will not appeal until you have had advice: if you do, or if your child is back within 7 days, it does not have to write. The letter must give the reasons, any conditions for coming back, your right to refer the decision to the council's appeal committee, and the address to send it to. The law sets no date for asking the appeal committee, but the council can set one: use any date in the council's letter, and ask at once. If the committee confirms the exclusion, an appeal to the sheriff has to be lodged with the sheriff clerk within 28 days of receiving the committee's decision. The appeal committee has to hold a hearing within 28 days of receiving your reference. If it has not held one within a month, the law can treat it as having confirmed the exclusion, and then the sheriff stage is open: take advice that day, and to be safe count the sheriff's 28 days from the end of that month.

Starts

the day the council decides to exclude your child. It must tell you that day, orally or in writing. For the sheriff stage, count from the date on the appeal committee's letter.

If missed

If the committee has not heard your reference within a month, do not keep waiting: see a solicitor or Citizens Advice Scotland the same day. The sheriff may hear an appeal lodged after the 28 days only if good cause is shown, so do not rely on it: take the committee's letter to a solicitor or Citizens Advice Scotland the day it arrives. If the 7-day meeting has passed, do not assume the appeal is closed: ask the council in writing at once.

It lets you

refer the exclusion to the council's education appeal committee, which can confirm it, cancel it, or change the conditions for coming back. A pupil with legal capacity can refer it too, so the council should write to both of you; for a child under 16 the council's letter goes to the parent. If the committee confirms the exclusion, appeal to the sheriff, who can confirm or cancel the decision. While your child is excluded the council must arrange suitable education; Citizens Advice Scotland says it should be in place within 10 days of the exclusion, and the Scottish Government's guidance expects it sooner, so ask on the first day what has been arranged.

Where this differs: Scotland only. England, Wales and Northern Ireland use different routes and dates: see their clocks. A claim that the school discriminated against your child because of a disability goes to the First-tier Tribunal for Scotland (Health and Education Chamber), and must be made within 6 months starting with the day of the act you complain about; the day itself counts as the first day. Ask Citizens Advice Scotland the same day.

Checked 10 October 2026 at legislation.gov.uk (Education (Scotland) Act 1980, section 28F as applied by section 28H(6); Schools General (Scotland) Regulations 1975, regulation 4A)

How long

No number of days is given on nidirect: the expelling authority must explain your right to appeal in writing, and the time for appealing is set locally. The date in that letter is your date. If the letter gives none, ask for it in writing the same day.

Starts

the day the expelling authority tells you it has decided to expel your child. That is the Education Authority for a controlled school and the Board of Governors for any other grant-aided school. A consultation meeting with you must come first.

If missed

No later date can be named here. If you may be late, write to the Education Authority at once, say why, and ask in the same letter whether the tribunal will accept the appeal; then call Advice NI the same day. The Department of Education says there is currently no independent appeal against a suspension: the process is inside the school.

It lets you

appeal in writing to the Expulsions Appeals Tribunal, setting out your grounds. The Education Authority must arrange suitable education for a child of compulsory school age who has been expelled until they go to another school. For a suspension, the Principal must tell you in writing straight away and the school must provide work. A first suspension cannot be longer than 5 days, the Principal needs the Chair of the Board of Governors' approval to extend it, and a child can be suspended for no more than 45 school days in a school year.

Where this differs: Northern Ireland only. England, Scotland and Wales have different routes and dates: see their clocks. If you think the expulsion was disability discrimination, say so in the expulsion appeal itself: in Northern Ireland that claim is made through the expulsion appeal, so the date in your letter is the date for it too. A disability discrimination claim about anything else, such as a suspension, goes to the Special Educational Needs and Disability Tribunal, and must be started within six months beginning with the day of the act you complain about. Ask Advice NI the same day.

Checked 10 October 2026 at nidirect (School discipline, suspensions and expulsions)