Fair, consistent sanction decisions for headteachers

Sanction Guidelines is a practical tool for headteachers and senior leaders making decisions about behaviour, sanctions, suspensions, and permanent exclusions.

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Created by a headteacher and shaped by structured decision-making, it helps school leaders make fair, proportionate, and evidence-based decisions that are clear, consistent, and defensible.

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Why it matters

When serious incidents happen, decisions can be rushed or shaped too heavily by pressure in the moment.

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Sanction Guidelines offers a clearer framework for deciding next steps. It helps leaders focus on:

• the evidence

• the seriousness of the behaviour

• the harm caused

• the wider context

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The aim is simple:
fairer decisions, clearer reasoning, and greater consistency.

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How it helps

Sanction Guidelines supports headteachers and senior leaders to:

• consider behaviour incidents in a measured and consistent way

• assess harm, culpability, and context before deciding on a sanction

• avoid reactive decision-making in high-pressure situations

• support suspension and permanent exclusion decisions with clearer rationale

• communicate decisions more effectively to staff, parents, governors, and panels

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A practical approach

These guidelines are there to support professional judgement, not replace it.

They are not about criminalising pupils or promoting a one-size-fits-all approach. They are there to help leaders make balanced, proportionate decisions rooted in evidence.

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Every case is different. The aim is to ensure similar incidents are considered with similar rigour, while still taking individual circumstances into account.

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Exclusion decisions need care, not haste

Where suspension or permanent exclusion is being considered, headteachers need to show that the decision is based on a careful review of the evidence and the relevant context.

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Sanction Guidelines is designed to support that process by helping leaders pause, review, and decide with clarity.

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It should be used alongside the relevant exclusion guidance for England and Wales, and alongside your school’s behaviour, equality, and inclusion policies.