09 January 2026
A school ski trip, a confiscated phone and an unauthorised hotel-room entry culminated in a pupil’s permanent exclusion. In this week's issue of NLJ, Nicholas Dobson charts how the Court of Appeal upheld the decision despite acknowledged procedural flaws
The majority stressed that headteachers and governors, not judges, are best placed to assess seriousness within the school environment. While one judge dissented, viewing the conduct as serious but not extreme, the court ultimately found the exclusion lawful even under heightened scrutiny.
The case underscores how judicial review in education balances intense human impact against institutional autonomy. Dobson highlights the limits of anxious scrutiny, warning courts against substituting their own views on discipline. The judgment confirms that permanent exclusion remains an exceptional sanction, but one that governors can lawfully deploy where behaviour crosses the line.
For schools and advisers alike, context remains everything.
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