This advice is aimed at head teachers, school staff and governing bodies in all schools in England.

This advice is intended to explain schools’ powers of screening and searching pupils so that school staff have the confidence to use them. In particular it explains the use of the power to search pupils without consent. It also explains the powers schools have to seize and then confiscate items found during a search. It includes statutory guidance which schools must have regard to.

Key points:
Searching
 School staff can search a pupil for any item if the pupil agrees1.
 Head teachers and staff authorised by them have a statutory power to search pupils or their possessions, without consent, where they have reasonable grounds for suspecting that the pupil may have a prohibited item. Prohibited items are:
o knives or weapons
o alcohol
o illegal drugs
o stolen items
o tobacco and cigarette papers
o fireworks
o pornographic images
o any article that the member of staff reasonably suspects has been, or is likely to be, used
i) to commit an offence,
ii) to cause personal injury to, or damage to the property of, any person (including the pupil)
o head teachers and authorised staff can also search for any item banned by the school rules which has been identified in the rules as an item which may be searched for

Confiscation
 School staff can seize any prohibited item found as a result of a search. They can also seize any item, however found, which they consider harmful or detrimental to school discipline.