Since 2013 there has been a year-on-year increase in the numbers of children being excluded from school, despite these numbers falling from 2006-07 to 2012-13. Now an average of over 35 children a day are excluded from school and evidence shows that only 1% of excluded pupils gain 5 GCSEs.

Statistics have consistently shown that it is often the most vulnerable children who face school exclusion. Almost half of the children who are excluded have an identified special educational need, making them seven times more likely than their peers to be excluded. Children who are claiming free school meals are four times more likely to be excluded than their peers and children from some ethnic backgrounds were also over-represented in exclusion figures.

On the 7th May 2019, the Timpson review was published and made a series of recommendations to make schools more accountable for the children they exclude. Some school leaders, however, have said that it failed to address how the funding crisis in schools is contributing to the problem.

This event will consider not only the reasons behind the rising rates of exclusions and how this trend can be reversed but also how those children who are excluded can be best supported.

Please see below a list of speakers for the event, and please also find this event listed on Facebook here:  https://www.facebook.com/events/872436046453332/

Speakers

Emma Hardy - Emma is the MP for Hull West and Hessle. She is a member of the House of Commons Education Committee and worked on their 2018 report entitled ‘Forgotten children: alternative provision and the scandal of ever-increasing exclusions.’ Emma is a former teacher and employee of the National Union of Teachers.

Sam Walters – Sam is the Headteacher of Redbridge Alternative Provision, a pupil referral unit that is rated as Outstanding (Ofsted 2018). Sam has worked in education for 8 years, 6 of which were based in a mainstream secondary school.

Kevin Kibble – Kevin is the Chief Executive at Nurtureuk, the national charity promoting nurture practice in education, particularly for children and young people affected by social, emotional and mental health issues. Nurture programmes are used in around 2,000 primary, secondary and special schools in the UK as well as pupil referral units and alternative provision.

Representative from ‘Education not Exclusion’ – Education not Exclusion is group of pupils from South London have been campaigning to end the rise of school exclusions. They ran a recent protest-campaign on the Northern line showing the impact that exclusions can have on young people’s lives - click the link to find out more: https://inews.co.uk/opinion/education-not-exclusion-why-we-put-up-posters-on-the-tube-showing-an-underground-line-to-prison/

This should be a fascinating event. We hope to see you there! 

Kind Regards,

The Education Network Steering Committee,

Helen, Sam, Jonathan and Lydia