Lambeth uses the Gateway form which can be completed by schools to access Tier 1, 2 and 3 support.
The form will enable Secondary Schools to access the Primary Inclusion Panel (PIP) for Tiers 1 and 2, and Secondary Inclusion Panel (SIP) for a managed move to a mainstream school for Lambeth pupils who are at risk of a permanent exclusion.
Tier 1 School support for an individual pupil, group of pupils or staff who are working with these pupils.
Tier 2 Short-term placements for students with or without an EHCP.
Tier 3 Long-term placements for pupils presenting with behaviour challenges that puts them at risk of a permanent exclusion (This will not be available for pupils with an EHCP as that would require an Annual Review)
Pupils who are eligible must:
- be a Lambeth resident of secondary school age i.e., in years 7 to 11
- display behaviours in the school setting demonstrating that their ability to positively engage in education is disadvantaged
- have had initial support from the referring school as part of a graduated response
- have had a one-off incident which would put them at risk of a permanent exclusion.
Suitable referrals will have provided evidence that the:
- pupil's behaviour has been unresponsive to the usual range of interventions to help address their difficulties
- severity, frequency, or duration of that behaviour is beyond the normal range that schools can tolerate
- pupil's behaviour significantly interferes with their or other pupils’ education or jeopardises the right of staff and pupils to be safe and work in an orderly environment
- headteacher has decided the pupil is at risk of permanent exclusion.
Tier 1
If the referral is approved for Tier 1 support, the panel will allocate support from the
- Behaviour Outreach Team
- Area SENCo Team
- Autism Advisory Service
- Education Welfare Service.
The panel can agree actions to be taken forward by a named officer of Lambeth:
- arrange a one-off home visit by an EWO
- ensure where appropriate that links and actions are made to Children’s Social Care
- agree to the implementation of School Attendance Order proceedings.
Tier 2
If the referral is agreed and there is sufficient capacity, the panel can agree a referral to Evolve Academy or an Alternative Placement. These will use Lambeth’s commissioned places, which pays for base funding, reducing the cost to schools for direct placement.
For Tier 2 referrals, before making a decision the panel will consider:
- whether the pupil is demonstrating sustained behaviour that puts the child, other children or adults at risk
- the school’s ability to mitigate the risk presented;
- the risk of keeping the pupil in school and whether this is greater than the risk of moving the pupil.
The panel will also be able to:
- agree action/s to be taken forward by a named officer of the Local Authority
- arrange a one-off home visit by the Education Welfare Service
- ensure where appropriate that links and actions are made to Children’s Social Care
- agree to the implementation of School Attendance Order proceedings.
Tier 3
The Panel will meet every 20 school days but in exceptional circumstances, the chair in conjunction with a named officer/s of the council may be required to make decisions outside of the Panel meetings. These cases will be considered on an emergency basis and will be minuted and ratified at the next appropriate full Panel.
The Panel’s responsibility is to decide the best placement for a pupil depending on their needs, this could be a mainstream school. During the panel meetings, members will look at the evidence presented and decide which mainstream school is best suited to meet a pupil’s needs.
Factors that influence decisions
The panel will consider all information available, considering:
- the pupil’s needs and family circumstances
- distance from the family home and parental preference
- information from referring school
- number of pupils with challenging behaviour admitted to each referred school
- professional recommendations, including of agencies currently working with the pupil
- religious affiliation.
Fair Access
The Gateway form will also include:
- Referrals from Lambeth Admissions for a child without a school place who requires a permanent placement at a mainstream school. These cases are for children and young people who are deemed vulnerable.
- Pupils who require a reintegration place at a mainstream school after they have attended a Pupil Referral Unit or an AEP following a permanent exclusion.
The criteria for these cases are found in the School admissions code 2021 (publishing.service.gov.uk).
Panel process
Once the referral has been made a smaller panel meeting (pre-panel) is held and a decision will be made about the suitability of the referral.
During pre-panel, if the panel decide that the case does not meet the threshold to progress to the main panel this will be discussed with the school where support will be offered at Tier 1 or Tier 2.
Who is on the Secondary Inclusion Panel
Core membership will include Local Authority representatives from:
- Inclusion
- Social Care / Early Help
- Area SENCo Team
- Education Welfare Service
- Educational psychology service
- Behaviour and SEMH Advisory Team.
There will also be representatives from:
- Health
- headteachers from Lambeth mainstream secondary schools
- a representative from Evolve Academy.
Other practitioners or case workers will attend at the invitation of the Chair.
Where practitioners are not required to attend a written report on specific cases may be requested. SIP will be chaired by a Secondary Headteacher.
Criteria for referrals
- The pupil must be a Lambeth resident.
- They must be of secondary school age in years 7 to 11.
The panel considers all information available so that the appropriate education provision can be offered to the pupil. The following factors are considered:
- the pupil’s needs and family circumstances
- a school’s distance from the family home
- parental preference
- information provided by the pupil’s home school
- How many pupils with challenging behaviour have already been admitted to each school
- recommendations made by professionals and those agencies currently working with the pupil
- religious affiliation.
Types of cases
Alternative to permanent exclusion
This is the highest tariff school case as the headteacher has decided to permanently exclude the pupil but has given the family an opportunity for the case to be discussed at the panel to see if another school place is offered.
The headteacher will complete the headteacher’s declaration form confirming to the panel that this pupil will be permanently excluded if the pupil is not offered another school place.
If a school place is offered to the pupil at the meeting the placement will be dual registered and follow the normal Managed Move process.
If the placement is unsuccessful, the headteacher will normally not bring the case back to panel but will follow the school’s behaviour policy regarding permanent exclusions.
Prevention and support
A prevention case is brought because the pupil’s behaviour puts them at serious risk of a permanent exclusion if the pupil does not demonstrate profound and lasting behaviour change.
These cases would traditionally be categorised as Managed Moves, and so pupils who are offered a school place by the panel will be on a dual registered placement.
Placement breakdown
There are times when a pupil needs a fresh start in a new school because of reasons other than challenging behaviour for example in cases of bullying or if the relationship between the student/family and school/school community has broken down. When a school place is offered under this category, the place will be a dual registered place.
Attendance
Where there are considerable concerns about a C/YP’s attendance, schools should engage with the Education Welfare Service in the first instance to address these concerns.
A referral to SIP can only be made in agreement with Education Welfare Service and following collaborative working to address the issues surrounding the C/YP’s non-attendance.
Where a pupil’s attendance is below 86% and factors such as:
- an allegation of sexual assault
- breakdown in peer relationships
- contextual safeguarding concerns
- Police bail conditions restrict a pupil from attending school
are the barriers to attending school, and school based or external intervention is not improving their school attendance, a conversation should be had with the EWS Manager, Patrick Ackason (packason@lambeth.gov.uk) or Senior EWO, Sophia Hall (SHall3@lambeth.gov.uk) to decide if it would be appropriate for a PIP or SIP referral to be made.
Pupils with an EHCP
Pupils who have an EHCP are not eligible to be heard at the Secondary Inclusion Panel but can apply for Tier 1 or Tier 2 support via the Primary Inclusion Panel.
Referral process
To make a referral please complete the Lambeth Gateway Referral Form.
You can upload additional paperwork to the referral form.
Please direct any queries to inclusionpanel@lambeth.gov.uk
If you would like to discuss the case before you make the referral, please contact the Behaviour and Inclusion Consultant Betsy Hall bhall@lambeth.gov.uk .