A recent report published last week showed that the numbers of suspensions and exclusions of school pupils in England have reached their highest levels in years. But is worsening behaviour really the only explanation? Experts say that the growing number of children with special educational needs and disabilities (Send) is closely linked to the rise in exclusions. This, driven in part by issues recruiting and retaining teaching staff, as well as overcrowded specialist schools.
Persistent disruptive behaviour was the most commonly cited reason for both suspensions and exclusions in the 2022/23 school year. Figures also showed that over 9,000 children were excluded in the same year; of those, over 60% were eligible for free school meals and more than half had special educational needs. There were also significant differences in exclusion rates between ethnic groups, with gypsy and Roma and Irish Traveller backgrounds having the highest.
Sabrina Simpson, a lawyer who works with families appealing against school exclusions, says children are too often viewed through a “behaviour lens”. “That was really sad to hear him say he thought he was ‘just naughty’, because that’s how everyone had made him feel.” Carol Homden, head of children’s charity, Coram, says the record numbers show “something is going wrong for these children”. Dr Homden wants more focus on suspensions, rather than exclusions, as they are “moments of opportunity to put a child’s life back on track”.
Behaviour problems are often “masking an underlying unmet need”. Beth Prescott, education lead at the Centre for Social Justice, says pupils are being affected by issues from “beyond the school gates”. Mental health problems and cost-of-living pressures on families are among the complex reasons cited for more children being persistently absent – defined as those missing at least 10% of school – than ever before. This has worsened since the pandemic, with one in five children now recorded as being absent for roughly one or more days every fortnight.
Sara, not her real name, experienced the effects of poor mental health and education on her son first hand. By the time he started school, he had complex educational needs and was showing symptoms of ADHD (attention deficit hyperactivity disorder) and autism – both of which he was later diagnosed for. He struggled to handle the school environment, resulting in meltdowns that would sometimes see him lash out in class. This eventually led to a series of suspensions; after which, he was permanently excluded from school and sent to a pupil referral unit, at the age of five
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