Behaviour policy for schools

The law: sections 88 and 89, and the Independent School Standards

A maintained school's behaviour policy rests on sections 88 and 89 of the Education and Inspections Act 2006. Section 88 says the governing body “must ensure that policies designed to promote good behaviour and discipline on the part of its pupils are pursued at the school”, and “must make, and from time to time review, a written statement of general principles” to guide the headteacher. Before making or revising that statement it must consult, in whatever manner it thinks appropriate, the headteacher, such staff as it thinks appropriate, parents of registered pupils and the registered pupils themselves.

Section 89 then puts the policy itself on the headteacher, who “must determine measures” aimed at:

• “promoting, among pupils, self-discipline and proper regard for authority”;
• “encouraging good behaviour and respect for others on the part of pupils and, in particular, preventing all forms of bullying among pupils”;
• “securing that the standard of behaviour of pupils is acceptable”;
• “securing that pupils complete any tasks reasonably assigned to them in connection with their education”; and
• “otherwise regulating the conduct of pupils”.

Section 89(4) says the measures “must include the making of rules and provision for disciplinary penalties”, and in England section 89(4A) adds that the rules “must identify the items for which a search may be made”. Section 89(5) allows the measures to cover conduct off the premises “to such extent as is reasonable”, and section 89(6) requires the headteacher to publicise them in writing and, “at least once in every school year”, bring them to the attention of all pupils, parents and everyone who works at the school, paid or unpaid. These sections apply to community, foundation and voluntary schools, maintained special and nursery schools, pupil referral units and non-maintained special schools.

Academies, free schools and independent schools are covered instead by the Independent School Standards, paragraph 9. The proprietor – in an academy, the trust – meets the standard only if “a written behaviour policy is drawn up that, amongst other matters, sets out the sanctions to be adopted in the event of pupil misbehaviour”, “the policy is implemented effectively” and “a record is kept of the sanctions imposed upon pupils for serious misbehaviour”. Paragraph 10 adds “an effective anti-bullying strategy”.

The Department for Education's Behaviour in schools advice (February 2024) is still the current edition, and it describes itself as “non-statutory guidance”: where it says “must”, it is restating the law. Parts of it have been overtaken – its reasonable force passage points to advice replaced on 1 April 2026, and its mobile phones section predates the statutory phone guidance – so check its links before you rely on them.

This guide covers England. Sections 88 and 89 also apply in Wales, with Welsh variations including a travel behaviour code; the Independent School Standards, section 93A and the Department for Education's guidance are England only; Scotland and Northern Ireland have their own law.

Who decides what, and how it is published

In a maintained school the work is split. The governing body writes the statement of behaviour principles; the headteacher writes the behaviour policy. Section 89(2) says the headteacher must “act in accordance with” the governors' current statement and “have regard to” any further guidance they give. Behaviour in schools calls that “a core responsibility of a headteacher. It cannot be delegated.” Governors set the principles, may decide the standard of behaviour regarded as acceptable (section 89(3)) and may ask for particular measures, but the policy is the headteacher's; a policy described as written by the governing body has the roles the wrong way round.

The Department for Education's statutory Behaviour and discipline in schools: guidance for governing bodies says governors would always be expected to tell the headteacher that the policy should cover screening and searching (including the banned items that may be searched for), the power to use reasonable force or make other physical contact, the power to discipline beyond the school gate, pastoral care for staff accused of misconduct, and when a multi-agency assessment should be considered for a pupil whose disruptive behaviour continues (paragraph 10). Paragraph 11 says governors “must not seek to hinder teachers' powers by including ‘no searching’ or ‘no contact’ policies”.

One change from 2026: since 29 June 2026, section 550C of the Education Act 1996 makes the Department for Education's mobile phone guidance statutory, and a new section 89(7) says that where governors' guidance to the headteacher is inconsistent with it, the headteacher's duty to have regard to the governors' guidance “does not apply to the extent of the inconsistency”. That displaces governors' guidance, not their statement of principles.

In an academy or independent school there is no statutory split: the proprietor is responsible, and a trust decides who drafts and approves the policy and whether one trust-wide policy has local appendices for each school.

Publishing follows the type of school. The Department for Education's page What maintained schools must or should publish online says: “Schools must publish their behaviour policy. It must comply with section 89 of the Education and Inspections Act 2006.” Its page What academies and further education colleges must or should publish online says: “Academies should publish their behaviour policy, including their anti-bullying strategy.” Separately, paragraph 32 of the Independent School Standards requires academies and independent schools to make available to parents and prospective parents “particulars of the school's policy on and arrangements for admissions, misbehaviour and exclusions”, and particulars of their arrangements for meeting the behaviour and anti-bullying standards.

No statute sets a review cycle for the behaviour policy itself. The legal clock is section 89(6): bring the measures to the attention of pupils, parents and staff at least once every school year. Governors review their statement of principles “from time to time”. An annual review is sensible practice, and Keeping children safe in education 2026 (paragraph 11) lists the behaviour policy among the systems explained to all staff at induction. For where the behaviour policy sits among a school's other required documents, see statutory policies for schools.

What a school behaviour policy should include

The law asks for rules, disciplinary penalties, measures against bullying and, in England, a list of searchable items. Behaviour in schools fills in the rest. It says “a behaviour policy should include detail on the following”:

1. purpose;
2. leadership and management;
3. school systems and social norms – “including rules, routines, and consequence systems”;
4. staff induction, development and support;
5. pupil transition;
6. pupil support;
7. child-on-child abuse – “including measures to prevent child-on-child abuse and the response to incidents of such abuse”;
8. banned items – “a list of items which are banned by the school and for which a search can be made”; and
9. mobile phones – “a clear approach prohibiting the use of mobile phones in school throughout the school day”.

In other words, the policy sets out the school's approach to behaviour and the behavioural expectations on pupils, and how staff and parents support them. It also asks for a policy that is accessible and easily understood, aligned and coherent, inclusive, consistent and detailed, and supportive. Much of what fills behaviour policies – “ready, respectful, safe”, zero tolerance, restorative conversations, reward charts, a relational approach – is the school's choice, not the law's. A “positive behaviour policy” is a matter of emphasis: section 89 begins with encouraging good behaviour and self-discipline, but it still requires rules and disciplinary penalties, so a policy built on praise and rewards must also say what happens when the rules are broken.

Several specific measures need a line in the policy because the guidance says so:

• Detentions. Behaviour in schools says the policy “should make clear that detention (including detention outside of school hours) can be used as a possible sanction”. Section 92 makes a detention outside school sessions lawful only if the pupil is under 18, the headteacher has already made it generally known within the school and to parents that such detentions may be used, and it falls on a permitted day of detention; the age and permitted-day conditions do not apply to a lunchtime detention.
• Removal from classrooms. The policy should make clear that removal may be used in response to serious misbehaviour and set out the principles for the period of time a pupil should spend in removal, and “parents should be informed on the same day if their child has been removed from the classroom”. Staff should ensure a pupil is never locked in the room they are removed to.
• Behaviour outside school. Behaviour policies “should set out what the school will do in response to non-criminal poor behaviour and bullying which occurs off the school premises or online and which is witnessed by a staff member or reported to the school, including the sanctions that will be imposed”.
• Suspension and permanent exclusion. The suspension and permanent exclusion guidance effective from 26 July 2026 calls suspension “an essential behaviour management tool that should be set out within a school's behaviour policy”; a pupil may be suspended for up to 45 school days in a single academic year. The process and its file are in our guide to school exclusion records.
• Reasonable force and restrictive interventions. The Department for Education's Restrictive interventions, including use of reasonable force, in schools replaced Use of reasonable force (2013) from 1 April 2026. It says the restrictive interventions policy “may be part of the school's behaviour policy or a standalone document”, and should set out when staff may use reasonable force and seclusion and how incidents are recorded and reported.
• Mobile phones. The statutory Mobile phones in schools guidance says the phone policy “can be included within the school's behaviour policy or be its own standalone document”, and that headteachers can and should name mobile phones and similar devices as something that may be searched for in the behaviour policy. Schools should follow it from 1 September 2026; the detail is in our mobile phone policy for schools guide.
• Malicious allegations against staff. Keeping children safe in education 2026 (paragraph 490) says that where an allegation is shown to be deliberately invented or malicious, the school should consider whether any disciplinary action is appropriate against the person who made it “as per their own behaviour policy”.
• Bullying of staff. The Department for Education's non-statutory Preventing and tackling bullying and harassment of school staff (9 July 2026) says bullying of staff by a pupil should be dealt with in line with the school's behaviour policy, and that parents and carers should be expected to support it.

Bullying: is a separate anti-bullying policy needed?

In a maintained school, preventing “all forms of bullying among pupils” is part of the headteacher's section 89 behaviour measures. The Department for Education's Preventing and tackling bullying advice (July 2017) says these measures “should be part of the school's behaviour policy which must be communicated to all pupils, school staff and parents”. Academies and independent schools must draw up and implement “an effective anti-bullying strategy” (Independent School Standards, paragraph 10), which the Department for Education says academies should publish with the behaviour policy. So an anti-bullying policy for schools may be a section of the behaviour policy or a separate document; the law requires the measures, not a second file.

Keeping children safe in education 2026 sets the content. Paragraph 11 describes the behaviour policy as one “which should include measures to prevent bullying, including cyberbullying, prejudice-based and discriminatory bullying”, and paragraph 259 says schools “must take a strong, proactive stand against all forms of bullying” and “should tackle bullying at the earliest opportunity to prevent it from escalating”. Paragraph 37 lists bullying, including cyberbullying, among the forms of child-on-child abuse.

The Department for Education defines bullying as “behaviour by an individual or group, repeated over time, that intentionally hurts another individual or group either physically or emotionally”. Its advice adds that “many experts” describe an imbalance of power, but that is commentary, not the definition. Whatever definition the school adopts “should be clearly communicated and understood by pupils, parents, and staff”. Where there is “reasonable cause to suspect that a child is suffering, or is likely to suffer, significant harm”, a bullying incident should be addressed as a child protection concern under the Children Act 1989 – in practice, staff discuss it with the designated safeguarding lead and the concern is referred to local authority children's social care. Keeping children safe in education 2026 (paragraph 643) adds that clear behaviour policies, “especially policies that set out the principles of how reports of sexual violence will be managed and how victims and alleged perpetrators are likely to be supported”, help with what it calls “inevitably very difficult conversations” with parents.

Recording bullying is a judgement in England, not a statutory duty. The advice says some schools record incidents to monitor numbers and spot repeat patterns, “others do not want to keep written records”, and “we want schools to exercise their own judgment as to what will work best for their pupils”; the 2017 advice also said “Ofsted will not routinely mark a school down where it has recorded incidents of bullying”. Northern Ireland is different: since 1 September 2021, section 3 of the Addressing Bullying in Schools Act (Northern Ireland) 2016 requires the Board of Governors of a grant-aided school to record every incident of bullying or alleged bullying involving a pupil at school, on the way to or from it or under staff control, with its apparent motivation, the method and how it was addressed. Recording prejudice-based incidents is covered in our guide to recording racist incidents in schools.

On 9 July 2026 the Department for Education removed Cyber bullying: advice for headteachers and school staff from its bullying collection, now titled Preventing bullying, “as this guidance has been replaced”. The same day it published Preventing and tackling bullying and harassment of school staff, which includes a page on handling online bullying and harassment; for pupils, Keeping children safe in education 2026 (paragraph 11) asks for measures against cyberbullying in the behaviour policy.

Applying it lawfully, and the records it creates

Section 91 of the Education and Inspections Act 2006 sets three conditions for a lawful disciplinary penalty at any school, academies and independent schools included:

1. the penalty is “not in breach of any statutory requirement or prohibition” and is “reasonable in all the circumstances”;
2. it is imposed by anyone who works at the school for payment – a class teacher, a teaching assistant, agency and contract staff included – unless the headteacher has said that person may not, or by another member of staff the headteacher has reasonably authorised; and
3. the decision and any action to carry it out are taken “on the premises of the school” or “at a time when the pupil was under the lawful control or charge of a member of staff”.

Reasonableness must take account of whether the penalty is proportionate, and of “the pupil's age”, “any special educational needs he may have” (whether or not the pupil has an education, health and care plan), “any disability he may have” and “any religious requirements affecting him” (section 91(6)). So a school can set rules for behaviour outside school, but the sanction is decided and carried out at school. Section 91 does not apply to exclusion. For suspensions and permanent exclusions, the July 2026 guidance (paragraph 20) says “it would also be unlawful to exclude a pupil simply because they have SEN or a disability that the school feels it is unable to meet”, and that the Equality Act 2010 duty to make reasonable adjustments “can, in principle, apply both to the suspensions and permanent exclusions process and to the disciplinary sanctions imposed”. Behaviour in schools is plain that “corporal punishment by school staff is illegal in all circumstances” (section 548 of the Education Act 1996).

Applying the policy creates records, several of them required:

• Sanctions for serious misbehaviour – academies and independent schools must keep a record of them (Independent School Standards, paragraph 9(c)).
• Use of force. Since 1 April 2026, section 93A requires the governing body of a maintained school, or the proprietor of any other school in England, to have a procedure for recording in writing, as soon as practicable, each significant incident in which staff use force on a pupil, and reporting it to each parent as soon as practicable. There is no report where the pupil is 20 or over, or to a parent where reporting would be likely to result in significant harm to the pupil; it then goes to another parent or, if there is none, the local authority. The statutory guidance says staff should “endeavour to do this no later than the same day”, and that schools should report to parents in writing, “for example, via email or online messaging system”.
• Seclusion and restraint. Since 1 April 2026 the Schools (Recording and Reporting of Seclusion and Restraint) (No. 2) (England) Regulations 2025 require every school in England to have a procedure for keeping a written record of each incident in which staff seclude, restrain or immobilise a pupil – including restraint without physical contact, such as removing a walking aid – and for telling parents in writing as soon as practicable; the guidance says schools should endeavour to do this no later than the same day. An incident that is also a use of force is recorded under section 93A instead.
• Exclusions – “any exclusion of a pupil, even for short periods, must be formally recorded” (suspension and permanent exclusion guidance, paragraph 20).
• Removals and behaviour data – the Department for Education advises analysing removal data, and says analysing behaviour data by protected characteristic “may help a school ensure that it is meeting its duties under the Equality Act 2010”. That is advice, not a duty.

Behaviour policies in primary schools rest on the same law: section 89 covers every maintained primary, and the Independent School Standards cover primary academies and prep schools. A primary with a reception or nursery class must also meet the EYFS framework for group and school-based providers, in force from 1 September 2026. Paragraph 3.74 makes providers “responsible for supporting, understanding, and managing children's behaviour in an appropriate way”; 3.75 bars any punishment “which could negatively affect a child's well-being”; and 3.76 says providers “must keep a record of any occasion where physical intervention is used, and parents and/or carers must be informed on the same day, or as soon as reasonably practicable”. That covers any physical intervention, wider than section 93A's significant incidents, so the early years policy needs its own line.

Inspection looks at whether the policy is used, not only whether it exists. Ofsted's state-funded school inspection toolkit (version 2.0, June 2026, for inspections from 7 September 2026) evaluates attendance and behaviour, including “having clear policies for attendance and behaviour that are applied effectively and proportionately” and “staff applying clearly defined consequences consistently and fairly when needed”. It also looks for leaders who “work with pupils and parents to communicate expectations about behaviour, including in relation to the use of mobile phones”.

Where the policy meets parents

Much of a behaviour policy is applied by communicating with parents. The annual reminder of the rules, a message that a child was removed from class that morning, the written use-of-force report the Department for Education says can go by “online messaging system”, a note that a detention will run after school tomorrow, and the parent's reply saying that is not what happened. Each of those messages is part of the record of how the policy was applied, and each can matter when a sanction is challenged, a complaint reaches governors or a suspension is reviewed.

Many of them never reach the school's systems. A form tutor answers a parent from a personal phone on a Sunday evening; a head of year settles a dispute in a class WhatsApp group; a teaching assistant gets the text explaining why a child was upset. When the school later needs to show what was said to the parent, and when, the answer sits on a handset the school does not hold.

ComplyChat is designed to keep those conversations on the school's record. Staff and, where the school chooses, parents talk in a channel the school holds; everyone added is told the channel is on the record and can object or leave; messages are recorded on the server as they are sent; and a mobile number verified by SMS is an identity, so a parent does not need an account on the school's systems. On paid plans, once the school's tenant is connected, conversations are kept under the retention schedules within the school's own Microsoft 365 subscription. ComplyChat is not a behaviour management system or a management information system: it does not log sanctions, analyse behaviour data or replace the system where the school records detentions and removals.

A question for the next leadership or governors' meeting: when a parent disputes a sanction, can the school produce every message it sent them about it, and when each one was sent?

Questions people ask

Is a behaviour policy a legal requirement for schools?

Yes. The headteacher of a maintained school must determine behaviour measures, including rules and disciplinary penalties, under section 89 of the Education and Inspections Act 2006, and an academy or independent school meets the Independent School Standards only if “a written behaviour policy is drawn up that, amongst other matters, sets out the sanctions to be adopted in the event of pupil misbehaviour” (paragraph 9).

What should a school behaviour policy include?

The law requires rules, disciplinary penalties, measures to prevent all forms of bullying and, in England, the items for which a search may be made (section 89(4) and (4A)). The Department for Education's Behaviour in schools advice adds purpose, leadership and management, systems and routines, staff induction and training, pupil transition, pupil support, child-on-child abuse, banned items and a clear approach prohibiting mobile phones during the school day.

Does a school need a separate anti-bullying policy?

Not necessarily. In a maintained school, preventing “all forms of bullying among pupils” is part of the section 89 behaviour measures, which the Department for Education says “should be part of the school's behaviour policy”; academies and independent schools need “an effective anti-bullying strategy” (Independent School Standards, paragraph 10), which may sit within the behaviour policy and should be published with it.

Does a primary school need a behaviour policy?

Yes. Section 89 applies to every maintained school, primary included, and the Independent School Standards apply to primary academies and independent prep schools. A primary with a reception class must also meet the EYFS, which requires providers to record any physical intervention and tell parents the same day or as soon as reasonably practicable (paragraph 3.76).

Do schools need parental consent for a detention?

No: “Parental consent is not required for detentions” that meet the legal conditions (Behaviour in schools). A detention outside school sessions is lawful only if the pupil is under 18, the headteacher has already made it generally known that such detentions may be used, and it falls on a permitted day; the age and permitted-day conditions do not apply to a lunchtime detention (section 92). England sets no statutory notice period – the 24 hours' written notice rule applies only in Wales – but the Department for Education says staff should consider whether parents ought to be told and whether the pupil can get home safely.

Can schools punish pupils for behaviour outside school?

Yes, to a reasonable extent. Section 89(5) lets a maintained school's behaviour measures cover conduct when pupils are off the premises and not under staff control “to such extent as is reasonable”, and the Department for Education says behaviour policies should set out the response to poor behaviour and bullying off the premises or online that staff witness or that is reported to the school. The sanction itself must be decided and carried out on the school premises or while the pupil is under a staff member's lawful control (section 91(5)).

Can a school suspend a child with ADHD?

A school can suspend a pupil who has special educational needs or a disability for a disciplinary reason, but it would be unlawful to exclude a pupil “simply because they have SEN or a disability that the school feels it is unable to meet” (suspension guidance, paragraph 20), and the Equality Act 2010 duty to make reasonable adjustments can apply to the process and to the sanction (paragraph 70). For sanctions short of exclusion, such as a detention or removal, section 91(6) requires the pupil's special educational needs and any disability to be taken into account.

Official guidance and your next step

The law is in sections 88, 89, 91, 92 and 93A of the Education and Inspections Act 2006 and paragraphs 9, 10 and 32 of the Independent School Standards. The Department for Education's guidance is Behaviour in schools, the governing bodies guidance, Mobile phones in schools, Keeping children safe in education 2026, Preventing and tackling bullying, the restrictive interventions guidance and the July 2026 suspension and permanent exclusion guidance. Quotations are from those pages as published on 21 October 2026.

This guide summarises the law and guidance that apply to schools in England and is not legal advice. Your trust, local authority or diocese may publish a model policy; check it against the law above rather than adopting it unread.

Then do one thing: open your current behaviour policy and check that it names the items that may be searched for, says detentions after school may be used, and says how parents are told about a removal, a use of force, or a seclusion or restraint.