Playing up

The Daily Mail recently revealed figures based on official statistics.

Currently about 2,200 young people are sent home from school every day. Last year 434,280 expulsions and suspensions occurred . Of these, 830 pupils received ten or more suspensions each in the year, - something difficult to imagine in 40 weeks.

Primary schools barred pupils 46,710 times, a ten per cent increase since 2003/04, and they sent home more than 3,000 pupils aged just four and five. Assaults against adults led to 260 expulsions from primary schools.

There does seem to be a switch from expulsions to suspensions, that is fixed-term exclusions, at the secondary level, and there is also suspicion that "managed moves" are replacing expulsions, by sending troublesome pupils straight to another school. Since 2004/05 there has been a threefold increase in these to more than 4,500 pupils. Permanent exclusions are also falling because parents are increasingly resorting to the appeals procedure. There were 240 successful appeals last year, compared with 210 in 2002/03. The number is "small ", reflecting the cost and disruption cause by the process itself.

Many of the cases will result in the "offenders" missing important schooling, and also disturbing the schooling of their fellows.

Clearly there are problems at home which contribute to the behaviour, and something must be done about that - a long term "cure" for family breakdown. Equally clearly when pupils have reached this stage, to protect the others and to help the offenders we must be prepared to separate the offenders out, not to roam the streets or lounge at home, but for one to one counselling and teaching. Otherwise these lives will be blighted and they will cause disruption at school and in the wider community, and ultimately cause greater costs.