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<p>All schools have the autonomy to decide the structure and duration of their school
day, which includes the flexibility to decide when their school day should start and
finish.</p><p>The department has not made an assessment of these decisions taken by
individual schools. We trust head teachers to decide how best to structure their school
day to support their pupils’ education.</p><p>There are no specific legal requirements
setting out how long each individual school day should be. Governing bodies of all
maintained schools in England are responsible for deciding when each school day should
begin and end. The duration of the school day in academies is the responsibility of
the academy trust.</p><p>In the event that a school decides to make changes to its
school day, it is our expectation that the school should act reasonably; giving parents
notice and considering those affected, including pupils, teachers, and parents.</p><p>The
department has made clear to schools that they have the power to discipline pupils
for misbehaviour that occurs outside of the school premises. The school behaviour
policy should set out what action the school will take in response to non-criminal
misbehaviour off the school premises.</p><p>Any form of violence in schools is completely
unacceptable and should not be tolerated. The school behaviour policy should set out
how poor behaviour, including incidents of violence, is dealt with. While the department
expects schools to take immediate and robust action if incidents of violence occur,
any decision on how to punish the pupil involved is a matter for the school. Should
the incident constitute a criminal offence, the school should report it to the police.</p><p>Knife
crime has devastating consequences on society, which is why this government is working
hard to tackle it and protect our children, families and communities through the Serious
Violence Strategy.</p><p>Schools must be safe places for pupils and we have strengthened
teachers’ powers so they can take action if they suspect a pupil has brought a prohibited
item, including knives, into school.</p><p>Alongside the government’s national #knifefree
campaign, we have also created resources for schools so they can teach young people
about the dangers of knife crime.</p><p>We have worked with the Home Office and other
key stakeholders, including the Police, Ofsted and the Health and Safety Executive,
to produce new school security guidance, which includes reference to knife crime.</p><p>The
department published its draft guidance and launched a public consultation on 26 November
2018 which will run until 18 February 2019. Both documents can be found at: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/school-security-draft-guidance"
target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/school-security-draft-guidance</a>.</p>
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