Unsurprisingly, the total number of secondary school fixed-term exclusions for 2019-20 has fallen from the previous year’s record 8816, partly because they have only been open for around two-thirds of the year because of the coronavirus pandemic. However, this year's total of 4778 is much lower proportionally, so this is a genuine fall with Folkestone and Hartsdown accounting for nearly a quarter of the difference between them.
Permanent exclusions continue at a very low level compared with national data, there being 12 from primary schools, 11 from secondary schools and one from a Special School in the same period of 2019-20.
My article on exclusions for 2018-19 provides Department for Education data by Local Authority for 2017-18 showing that Kent had a very low level of permanent exclusions, and also fixed-term exclusions below the national average. The 2018-19 data has not yet been released, but I will include it here later if it does materialise.
There were 12 permanent exclusions from primary schools, 11 from secondary schools and one from a Special School in the same period of 2019-20 compared with 14 primary and 29 secondary permanent exclusions in the whole of the previous year and so this continues the annual fall from the overall 66 of four years ago previously and much higher before then. Because numbers are so small, KCC does not provide data on permanent exclusions for any individual school. Highest figures on a district basis are three for primary schools in Dartford and secondary schools in Gravesham and Tonbridge & Malling.
When looking at fixed-term exclusions for a school, I use the percentage of the statutory roll (Years 7-11) as the fairest measure when looking at the ranking of schools. So Astor College with its 694 Year 7-11 pupils and 272 exclusions in the table below, has a higher proportion at 39.19% than Oasis Isle of Sheppey Academy. Oasis has by some way the highest number of exclusions in the county at 478, but is also the second-largest secondary school in the county, with nearly twice as many pupils at 1246.
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Secondary Fixed Term Exclusions
Kent and Medway 2019-20*
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| School | Exclusions |
Statutory**
Roll Jan 20
|
%***
|
| Astor College | 272 | 694 | 39.19% |
| Charles Dickens | 432 | 1103 | 39.17% |
| John Wallis CofE | 402 | 1042 | 38.6% |
| Oasis Sheppey | 478 | 1246 | 38.4% |
| High Weald Academy | 93 | 253 | 36.8% |
| Dover Christ Church | 152 | 698 | 21.8% |
| Archbishop's School | 114 | 589 | 19.4% |
| Leigh UTC | 89 | 495 | 18.0% |
Turner Schools, Folkestone Academy
