I Exclusion Vignette
A few years ago, a group of inspectors on their way to a school which was to be brought under the watchdog’s microscope were grounded a few hundred yards from their destination because their car had broken down. Three young lads who saw them offered to help. They fished out the jack, raised the car on it, opened the bonnet, fiddled with the engine and in little time resolved the problem and set the engine running.
The inspectors were grateful, overjoyed and effusive in their thanks. They asked these young men who they were and what they had been planning to do.
“We are pupils at ……. School. We were heading back to our homes.”
“Why?” asked the inspectors, “especially as it is a working day.”
“Oh,” said the second boy, “we were told to go home by the headteacher because we have been described as disruptive and informed that inspectors would be visiting the school.”
I am not sure what the outcome of that inspection was as it happened some time ago. However, it is not unknown for schools and academies to engage in such dubious practices today, even though a school/academy will be given under 24 hours’ notice of an inspection. What is sad is not only that in some cases excluded pupils miss out on learning, but also that they have considerable potential to learn based on the talents they have (as seen from this incident), if only schools and academies press the right buttons.
II The Timpson Review
On 7 May 2019, Edward Timpson, former children’s minister, published his review on the exclusions of pupils. It made 30 recommendations all of which were accepted by the Government.
Timpson’s review included good and bad news. The good news was that 85% of mainstream schools/academies had not expelled any pupils in the academic year 2016/17. The bad news was that in each of 0.2% institutions that had expelled pupils more than 10 pupils had been excluded in that academic year. Vulnerable pupils were more likely to be excluded. Altogether, 78% of permanent exclusions were of children who had special needs or classified as being eligible for free school meals.
Fewer Bangladeshi and Indian pupils were excluded than White British, Black Caribbean and mixed White and Caribbean ones.
In October 2017, former Prime Minister, Theresa May appointed Edward Timpson to carry out a review on the exclusions of pupils in schools and academies in response to the Race Disparity Audit. Edward Timpson was asked to lead the review in March 2018. He set out to explore how schools use exclusion.