THE new Education Secretary postponed a requirement for schools to take a share of expelled pupils as she yesterday advocated “zero tolerance” of classroom disruption.

Ruth Kelly abandoned a deadline of this September set by her predecessor Charles Clarke for all schools, including selective grammars and popular comprehensives, to sign local agreements on admitting unruly pupils. Mr Clarke announced the plan less than three months ago, saying that head teachers should share the burden of educating expelled pupils rather than let them be concentrated in “sink” schools that have spare places.

Ms Kelly pushed the deadline back to September 2007, saying that some schools needed the additional time to prepare. The Conservatives, who yesterday announced their own policy on school discipline, called this a “breathtakingly cynical ploy” and promised to scrap the requirement. Tim Collins, the Shadow Education Secretary, said: “Ministers will still force schools to take disruptive pupils — guaranteeing a thug in every playground — but hope to get some credit by postponing this dangerous idea.”

In her speech to heads in Blackpool Ms Kelly urged schools to “redraw the line on what is acceptable behaviour” and said that the Government supported heads who took a “zero tolerance approach to discipline”. She said: “I do not want to suggest that we should return to Dickensian styles of imposing discipline, nor that we should return to classrooms of total silence, but if we are serious about tackling bad behaviour, there are things that we cannot tolerate. We do not want pupils whose thoughts are elsewhere when they should be on their lessons . . . Every pupil and every teacher has the right to expect a safe and orderly classroom, so that teaching and learning can flourish.”

Teachers, she said, should no longer tolerate incessant chattering; calling out in class and answering back; inattention; lateness; leaving the premises without permission; flouting uniform or dress codes; and causing nuisance to other pupils.

Michael Howard, the Conservative leader, pledged to give heads the final say on expulsions by scrapping independent appeals panels. Parents would only be able to appeal to the courts.

The threat of permanent exclusion would counter low-level disruption, Mr Howard said. “Bad behaviour undermines standards and poor standards encourage bad behaviour.”

Ms Kelly ordered local education authorities to intervene at any school where Ofsted rated behaviour as unsatisfactory. The school would have to deal with disruption “as a matter of urgency”; Ofsted would revisit within a year.

Local education authorities should also make greater use of powers to seek Parenting Orders against parents of persistently unruly children.

Authorities should review provision for removing pupils without expelling them, and devolve funding to groups of schools to organise alternative education for such children; schools could purchase education from voluntary groups or other local authorities.

Mr Collins pledged to create a network of “turnaround schools”. Children would only return to a mainstream school when they had earned a certificate of good behaviour.

TWO TIMETABLES

Expulsions

Conservatives will scrap appeals panels and force parents to argue their case in court. Labour will allow disruptive children to be removed from class and keep appeals panels.

Class discipline

There will be more parenting orders under Labour, which will let courts impose fines and parenting lessons. Ofsted will check within a year on schools lacking discipline. Tories will give heads the right to insist on good behaviour.

Teachers

Labour will provide on-site lessons for those who cannot be in class. Tories will give teachers greater legal protection, including anonymity unless found guilty of any charges. High-achieving schools will not have to take their share of disruptive pupils.

School security

Tories will fund CCTV, metal detectors and random drug-testing. Labour is consulting on search powers for heads and on better police/school liaison.

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