Nick Harvey says:

The Liberal Democrats have recently welcomed new powers given to head teachers as part of the Education and Inspections Act 2006, but warned that ‘the devil will be in the detail’.

The new law sets tougher targets on local authorities and schools to ensure high standards are obtained in the classroom. In particular, where a pupil is excluded from school for more than a week, local education authorities are mandated to make alternative arrangements for the child.

It is essential that schools have sufficient powers to discipline rowdy pupils. In serious cases, head teachers must be able to exclude pupils without being bogged down in government bureaucracy.

However, where a pupil is excluded for two weeks it seems totally unreasonable to expect local authorities to provide alternative education, which is likely to be both costly and possibly ineffective.

Background:
Education and Inspections Act 2006 Chapter 40
Excluded pupils
100. Duty of governing body or proprietor where pupil excluded for fixed period
(1) Except in prescribed cases, the governing body of a relevant school in England must make arrangements for the provision of suitable full-time education for pupils of compulsory school age who are excluded from the school for a fixed period on disciplinary grounds.

See:
http://www.uk-legislation.hmso.gov.uk/acts/acts2006/ukpga_20060040_en_2#pt1-l1g1