Disciplinary Procedure Guidelines

SECTION ONE

Introduction

  1. This policy has been drawn up in order to inform all members of the Bridge House community of the procedures the school will follow when dealing with allegations of misconduct by pupils. It serves also to guide the school and its teachers in the application of disciplinary measures. This policy should be read in conjunction with the School's Code of Conduct, which sets out the standards of conduct expected of pupils, and the school's other policy documents.

  2. This disciplinary procedure has been finalised after undergoing a process of discussion and consultation involving pupils, teachers, parents and the Board of Governors. The school reserves the right to review and adapt this policy when necessary.

SECTION TWO

Disciplinary Measures

  1. The underlying purpose of all disciplinary measures initiated by the school will be to foster the standards of behaviour and principles stated in the Code of Conduct. The school will strive to maintain discipline in a manner that builds an atmosphere of mutual respect and tolerance and enhances pupils' sense of self-confidence and self-worth.

  2. The school reserves the right to exercise both informal and formal disciplinary measures as it deems appropriate. The decision as to which procedure to follow will depend on the seriousness of the alleged infringement and any mitigating or aggravating circumstances.

  3. Disciplinary measures that may be applied by the school include the following:

    • Counselling by a member of staff

    • Detention

    • Community service

    • Parent contact or an interview with parents

    • Withdrawal of rights and privileges, including sport and social activities which form part of the Bridge House curriculum

    • A formal warning

    • Suspension from school

    • Expulsion

  4. Discipline should be appropriate to the offence and applied progressively. Repetition of offences will result in progressively more severe action being taken. However, it is possible that a serious first offence could justify a severe penalty, including expulsion.

  5. A serious offence will be recorded in a pupil?s file for an appropriate period.

SECTION THREE

Disciplinary Process

  1. This section outlines the procedures that will be followed by the school when taking disciplinary action.

Minor Infringements

  1. Infringements that are not considered serious, or do not require formal disciplinary action in the opinion of the relevant teacher, will be dealt with directly by the teacher. These informal disciplinary measures may be implemented by teachers without reference to a head of department or the Head.

Serious Infringements

  1. When a more serious infringement occurs or is alleged, the teacher concerned, and the head of department or Head if appropriate, should investigate the complaint in order to determine the appropriate disciplinary procedure to be followed. At this stage, before the validity and details of the complaint have been established, the school will not necessarily advise the parents or guardian of a pupil that a complaint is being investigated. The parents or guardians will be informed if the matter is to proceed further.

  2. The school reserves its rights to discipline its pupils according to the principle of natural justice prior to expulsion.

  3. If the circumstances warrant it, the infringement will be noted on the pupil's record and / or the pupil's parents or guardian advised of the misconduct.

  4. Where necessary, a written notification of a disciplinary hearing will be given to the pupil and to his / her parents or guardian. The school reserves the right to suspend the pupil pending the hearing.

  5. The notification must:

5.1 state when and where the inquiry is to be held;

5.2 state the name of the person chairing the inquiry;

5.3 state the substance of the complaint or complaints against the pupil;

5.4 advise the pupil and his / her parents or guardian that they are expected to attend the hearing as their non-attendance may prejudice their case and result in the hearing being held in their absence;

5.5 the principles of natural justice will apply to both parties at the hearing, ensuring that both parties can lead evidence, cross-examine and call witnesses;

5.6 whenever possible the pupil and his / her parents or guardian should be notified of the hearing at least two working days before it takes place.

  1. Legal representation is not permitted at an internal disciplinary inquiry or hearing.

  2. The disciplinary hearing should be chaired by a senior representative of the school. If the school deems it necessary, it may engage the services of a suitably qualified or experienced third party to conduct the inquiry.

  3. A disciplinary hearing is an informal inquiry in which the formal rules of evidence and trial are not applicable. The chairperson will have a broad discretion to determine the manner in which evidence is led and in which the proceedings are to be conducted.

  4. These guidelines should be followed in order to ensure a fair hearing:

    • the chairperson should be impartial, and as far as possible should not have been involved directly in the events which form the basis of the complaint(s) or have taken any part in the investigation;

    • the chairperson's findings should be based only on evidence presented at the inquiry;

    • the proceedings should be conducted with due regard to the rights to dignity and privacy of all concerned;

    • the pupil and his/her parents or guardian must properly understand the complaint(s) before the commencement of the hearing;

    • the pupil and his / her parents or guardian must be presented with all the relevant facts and information relating to the complaint(s);

    • the pupils and his / her parents or guardian must be allowed to challenge the evidence presented in support of the complaint(s), to present their own perspective on the events and to explain and / or defend the pupil's actions. If they choose to do so, they may lead evidence in support of the pupil's defence;

    • at the conclusion of the evidence on the merits, the chairperson must determine whether the pupil is guilty of the misconduct alleged in the notification of the disciplinary hearing. No finding of misconduct should be made in respect of infringements for which prior notice was not given or where there was not a proper opportunity to challenge the allegations. In the case of such a secondary complaint(s) a second inquiry, conducted in the same informal manner and subject to the same principles as the first, should be held to determine the appropriate sanction for that complaint.

  5. After the completion of the disciplinary hearing, any findings made should be communicated in writing to the pupil's parents or guardian by the chairperson. If the pupil is found guilty of any misconduct, the chairperson must briefly state the reasons for the finding and the sanction imposed. In the event that the sanction is expulsion, this notification must include a reminder that the pupil has the right to appeal to the Head in writing within five days of the hearing's outcome being communicated. An appeal will be conducted by a person or persons appointed by the Board.

  6. The chairperson must ensure that a record or summary of the evidence led at the inquiry is kept. The school must keep copies of the record and all documentation used at the inquiry for at least three months after the conclusion of the inquiry.

  7. If the pupil has been suspended pending the completion of the hearing process, the submission of an appeal will not affect the suspension which will remain in place until the appeal has also been concluded.

  8. The appeal should be conducted within five school days of receipt of the appeal motivation.

  9. When a decision has been made by the appeal tribunal after giving due consideration to the matters raised in the appeal, the written finding must be provided to the parents or guardian of the pupil within five days of the finding having been made.

  10. Should the parents wish to contest the school's decision, both parties will agree on an independent arbitrator selected from TOKISO and / or an independent educator from SAHISA, agreed upon by both parties. Should no agreement be reached between the two parties, the Managing Director of TOKISO will appoint an arbitrator. The costs of this will be paid by the parent contesting the school's decision.

Section Four

Collective Disciplinary Action

  1. The above disciplinary procedure is principally designed to deal with instances of misconduct by individual pupils. Allegations of misconduct by a group or groups of pupils, or involving several alleged infringements of a similar nature, constitute collective misconduct.

  2. Collective misconduct may be dealt with more effectively on a collective basis. A single investigation and disciplinary hearing may then be held, subject to the principles set out above, adapted where necessary.

  3. In a collective disciplinary hearing, individual pupils still should be given the opportunity to demonstrate that their circumstances differ from the rest of the group.

  4. The school reserves the right to adopt either individual or collective procedures as it deems appropriate.