OCC School Exclusions Inquiry: Perspectives of teaching staff and other professionals

Key Findings

• Participants told us that certain groups of pupils were disproportionately excluded in their areas: boys, pupils receiving free school meals, pupils with Special Educational Needs, those from certain ethnic groups, looked-after children and previously excluded pupils.
• Reasons for exclusions included: specific incidents (e.g. an assault), persistent disruptive behaviour and broader systemic reasons (e.g. failure to investigate causes of poor behaviour).
• Schools’ approaches to exclusion ranged from a ‘non-exclusions’ approach to a ‘zero tolerance’ culture.
• Schools were using strategies to prevent exclusions (such as seclusion and de-escalation) and provided alternatives to exclusion (such as managed moves or transfer of pupils to another school, often brokered and managed via a fair access protocol).
• Some participants saw an exclusion as a positive outcome for the individual and/or their classmates and/or the school. Others felt a sense of failure and guilt. In most cases, teachers felt that exclusion rarely benefited the excluded pupil concerned or, in isolation, effected positive change in their behaviour.
• Most teachers said that unofficial and illegal exclusions had occurred in their school at some point.
• Awareness of the equality and exclusions legislation varied, while awareness of the newly introduced changes to the exclusion appeal system was low.

Related Titles

OCC School Exclusions Inquiry , OCC School Exclusions Inquiry , OCC School Exclusions Inquiry , Admissions and exclusions of pupils with special educational needs , NFER Teacher Voice Omnibus November 2012 Survey , Teacher Voice Omnibus May 2013 Survey

Sponsor Details

Office of the Children’s Commissioner