FEATURE: MENTAL HEALTH & WELLBEING
Exclusions in primary schools - why it’s vital to do our neuroscience homework
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n our first feature this month Dr Margot Sunderland, Director of Education and Training at The Centre for Child Mental Health (CCMH) and Co-Director at Trauma Informed Schools UK, discusses the impact of primary school exclusions and asks how we move beyond the current system to one that actually helps keep children in schools and not out of them.
Permanent pupil exclusions from UK primary schools are rising at a shocking rate – with a twofold increase in exclusions of 5-6-year-olds in the past 3 years, and a 20% increase to 455 children excluded in the Autumn Term 2019, compared to the same period the previous year. With a higher percentage of boys (89%) and the most commonly cited reason given being ‘physical assault against an adult’ (41% of cases) followed by ‘persistent disruptive behaviour’ (30%) and ‘assaulting another pupil’ (10%), we need to find an alternative solution. It is our duty as leaders and teachers to stem this terrible trend in our schools as soon as possible. The statistics around ‘who’ gets excluded are just as alarming. Studies show that boys, children from single parent families and those living in poorer communities have a higher
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chance of exclusion. Pupils with equally challenging behaviour but who live with both parents, in more affluent areas are shown more tolerance and therefore less likely to be excluded.
With increasing levels of exclusion, the impact it has on a child’s future needs to be considered. There is strong evidence of a common trajectory from exclusion in school to spending time in prison - children excluded before the age of 12 are five times more likely to land in prison by the age of 24. We are determining the future lives of these young children, by being unable to respond to challenging behaviours and provide the care and support they need.
What is the cause of behaviours that challenge?
A child with behaviours that challenge can cause a great deal of disruption and stress for other pupils and teachers, impacting on learning and play. Behaviour ranges from an inability to sit on a chair, constantly moving around the class, crawling on the floor, shouting out, to more destructive behaviours - throwing resources or furniture and acting in a violent manner towards staff or peers.
January 2022
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