Record Number of Children Expelled and Suspended from School in England
Concerns are mounting in the UK as data on school exclusions and suspensions show that they have exceeded pre-pandemic levels. A total of 9,376 children were permanently excluded from school in 2022/2023, a 44% increase from the previous year. The number of children temporarily excluded also increased by 36% from last year to 786,961.
White and mixed Caribbean children are 85% more likely to be suspended. “The record suspensions and expulsions should be of deep concern to everyone involved in education and should remind the new government of the scale of the job ahead of them,” said Paul Whiteman, General Secretary of the school governors’ union. “We cannot go on like this,” he said.
A Sky News investigation last year found that some schools were deliberately excluding pupils because of special educational needs or disabilities. One local official said he had witnessed such practices and that some teachers boasted that they had “cleansed” students from school.
Education Minister Stephen Morgan said, “These shocking figures show the scale of disruptive behavior in schools that increased under the previous government. This is worsening working conditions for school staff, restricting education, and negatively impacting children’s futures. Every student deserves to learn in a safe and peaceful classroom, and we will always support our teachers to ensure this. We are committed to tackling the causes of bad behavior. We have committed to providing access to specialist mental health professionals in secondary schools, offering free breakfast clubs in primary schools, and launching early intervention programs for pupils with special needs. But we know that bad behavior can be caused by wider social problems, which is why we are developing an ambitious strategy to reduce child poverty.”
As a result, the solution to the exclusion and suspension crisis in England will not only come from a reassessment of behavioral policies in schools but also from addressing wider social issues such as child poverty and mental health. Government action on this issue is critical to ensuring that future generations have equal opportunities in education.