* The first two new style academies created in Kent top the list of permanent exclusions between September and Easter, headed by Westlands School in Sittingbourne with 11. Next is Canterbury High School with nine permanent exclusions. Both these schools previously had outstanding Ofsted reports, so it is difficult to believe they have difficult disciplinary problems. Other schools with high numbers of permanent exclusions over this period are: Chaucer Technology School, also in Canterbury (9); Hartsdown Technology College (converting to an academy – 8) and the Marlowe Academy both in Thanet (7); and Astor College for the Arts in Dover (also 7). The total over this period is rising alarmingly already being almost the same as for the whole of 2009-10.
* Of particular concern is the number of children with statements of special education needs (SEN) who continue to be permanently excluded, in spite of government policy that “schools should avoid permanently excluding pupils with statements, other than in the most exceptional circumstances”. While I don’t yet have figures for this year, in 2009-10 out of a total of 168 secondary exclusions 22 were of statemented children, a further 68 being of other children with SEN, together over half of the total. However, the most astonishing and alarming statistic in this whole survey is that nearly all of the 34 Kent primary school exclusions in the last school year were of children with Special Education Needs, with 13 statemented children and another 18 with SEN. Although I don’t have more detailed information, and it is unlikely to be available, it is likely that most of the statemented children permanently excluded are thrown out because of behaviour arising from their medical condition of autism, over which they will have no control. Clearly we are not making proper educational provision for these children.
* in Medway there is a remarkably different picture. The council reports that there were just three permanent exclusions from Medway Secondary Schools in 2009-10 (none statemented), and none from primary schools. For 2010-11 the reported figure is currently zero, although Medway Council has subsequently claimed it is unaware of at least three permanent exclusions from Bishop of Rochester Academy, even though it would have responsibility for those children, so this figure needs to be treated with some caution.
Remember; in general, an excluded child does not just go away, they are moved to another school to be given a fresh chance but, as this will usually be one of the few with vacancies in the area, it just heaps the problems on a possibly struggling school.This all begs many questions. Firstly, why are the pictures in Kent and Medway so very different?
Medway may only have around one sixth of the children being educated in Kent, but this does not come close to explaining why some Kent schools resort to formal exclusion proceedings so often, whereas Medway can avoid a dramatic, stressful and bureaucratic process so effectively.
Medway schools have always co-operated well over what are called ‘managed moves’ to a fresh school, although whether this will continue when all are independent academies remains to be seen.
How can Kent primary schools exclude children with statements in such numbers, compared to a negligible number of children without special needs, in direct contradiction to the government imperative that this should only happen in exceptional circumstances?
Why does Kent but not Medway have so many exceptional circumstances?
Once again KCC is seeing children who surely deserve the highest standard of care, at the bottom of the pile (see last week’s Kent on Sunday). Another factor to add to KCC’s Scrutiny Committee investigation into primary school standards.
What is special about Westlands and Canterbury High apart from the fact they are outstanding Ofsted schools, that they need to take this extreme action, effectively forcing these children to less popular and successful schools, whereas others, often in far more difficult situations, appear to be able to manage better? Are they showing the future for academies?
What happens to the schools that become ‘dumping grounds’ for children excluded by other schools better able to cope with them?
Above all, why does KCC not look at Medway’s procedures to learn how to improve these dreadful figures? One crucial difference between the two Local Authorities, is that Medway has kept its Special Schools catering for children with Moderate Learning difficulties, which means that they are provided with specialist teaching, whereas in Kent these children are now in mainstream schools which often do not have the expertise to provide for them. If it were not for my successful campaign last year to change Kent's policy of abolishing Special Units for children with particular needs (including autism), there would be more out in mainstream unable to cope and and risk of exclusion.
If children with these types of Special Need are to be educated in mainstream schools, there needs to be an emphasis on their teaching and management in initial teacher training (at present it is generally negligible) and also on In-Service training for more experienced teachers, otherwise the problems will continue and, as this year's initial figures suggest, grow alarmingly.