VIEWS & OPINION Where have all the children gone? Comment by SAL McKEOWN, journalist and editor
In 2017, 61,000 children disappeared from their school by year 11 for no apparent reason. That is 10 %, or three in every class. Who are these children and what happens to them? Many educators and commentators have long suspected that children are encouraged to leave if they are unlikely to achieve five good grades, However, the scale of this
education apartheid, as revealed in the Education Policy Institute’s most recent report, published at the beginning of this school year, is shocking. Just six per cent of schools account for nearly a quarter these moves, and children with special needs are at heightened risk. It seems that the current system is a breeding ground for the next generation of NEETs.
Jo Hutchinson, Director for SEND and Additional Needs at the Education Policy Institute, discussed the findings at the TES SEN Show held at The Business Design Centre in Islington on 7 and 8 October. While the government is concerned about the pupils who have not returned to school post lockdown, it is now clear that children have been falling out of the system for years. The EPI has a decade of data. They analysed exits from secondary schools using longitudinal records on three different cohorts of pupils: those taking their GCSEs in 2011 (602,933 pupils), in 2014 (616,829 pupils) and in 2017 (603,705 pupils).
‘Unexplained exits’ does not include those who left for ‘family reasons’. This might include children whose families have relocated to another authority, children of armed service personnel or of Roma, Gypsy and Traveller families who may relocate regularly as part of their pattern of employment or migration. Nor does it include official exclusions, moving to another school, going into the independent sector, a special school or Alternative Provision.
Some might ask why it matters. The short answer is that many of those children affected are likely to be vulnerable or require extra support. We need the data if they are to be protected and given their statutory right to a full time education.
According to the figures presented by Jo Hutchinson, they include: • Almost 1 in 3 of Looked After Children and young people with SEMH • 1 in 4 pupils with fixed period exclusions or significant absence • 1 in 5 children in need of local authority social services • 1 in 6 young people with any type of SEND and children who are or who have been entitled to free school meals • 1 in 7 black children and of children with low prior attainment
Why might schools off roll? Often the justification is that a particular school is not the right 24
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setting for that individual child. Behaviour may be cited as a reason, but many teachers believe that academic achievement can be a factor in the decision making. If a child is difficult to manage in class but is academically able, they are more likely to retain their place in the school. ‘There is a clear relationship between low attainment and unexplained exit,’ said Jo Huchinson.
League tables, Ofsted ratings and local reputation all play a part, but the story schools tell may not give the full picture. For example, the performance tables provide information for parents about GCSE results in each school, but these do not include the results of children who have left the school, even when the school instigated an early exit. Currently, schools are almost incentivised to move those children on who are not going to maintain or enhance their reputation. Ofsted defines off-rolling as: ‘the practice of removing a pupil from the school roll without a formal, permanent exclusion or by encouraging a parent to remove a child from the school roll, when the removal is primarily in the interests of the school rather than in the best interest of the pupil.’ Inspectors may not be entirely aware of what is going on and in a two day inspection may be focusing on deep dives into aspects of the curriculum, rather than into the destination of children who have left the school since year 7. Teachers know that this happens, according to a Teacher Tapp survey: ‘Among our panel of more than 3,000 teachers, 14 per cent said their school had formally excluded or encouraged a pupil to leave “to protect the school’s exam results”. That figure is higher in secondary schools, and particularly in those rated Requires Improvement or Inadequate. In these schools, 22 per cent of teachers reported cases of missing pupils, many of whom never pop up again in someone else’s classroom.’
Hutchinson pointed out that other research by the Education Policy Institute has shown that academisation may also play a part. When a primary school converts to academy status, the chances of a pupil being recognised as having a special need or disability reduces. Children are only one third as likely to qualify for extra school support and only half as likely to get an EHCP as children in non-academies.
What happens next?
Children who have an unexplained exit are categorised as moving from ‘school to unknown destination.’ This is a cause for concern when it comes to safeguarding young people. The Children’s Commissioner flagged the dangers in 2019. Talk to any child in prison or in trouble with the police and they will tell you that falling out of school was a trigger point. With 100,000 now being excluded or off-rolled each year, there are a lot of children on the outside – and it is being on the outside which makes these children vulnerable. Children should be at school, it gives them structure, access to support, the opportunity to build relationships with trusted adults and other friends. For vulnerable children on the edge of gangs, it’s these basics which are missing from the rest of their lives. With threats of yet more cuts to health and social services, the danger is increasing.
For more information:
https://epi.org.uk/publications-and-research/identifying-send/ https://epi.org.uk/publications-and-research/unexplained-pupil-exits/ https://epi.org.uk/publications-and-research/unexplained-pupil-exits- data-multi-academy-trust-local-authority/
https://teachertapp.co.uk/
November 2022
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