Welsh Schools Exclude One Pupil Every Four and a Half Minutes

A disturbing snapshot of violence, vandalism and drug abuse inside Welsh schools is revealed today, with the news that a pupil is excluded on average every four and a half minutes.

The number of children suspended from Welsh schools has rocketed in recent years, and now stands at nearly double the tally of four years ago, according to the latest figures released by the National Assembly.

Although secondary schools account for the bulk of pupils suspended, there has also been a worrying increase in the number of pupils barred from attending primary schools, with children aged between four and 11 now making up more than 10% of the total number.

On average 10 primary school pupils are suspended from schools in Wales on every day of the school year.

In the 2003/2004 academic year

16,950 pupils were suspended from Welsh schools

An average of 87 pupils are excluded on every school day

Nearly 80% of those excluded were boys

500 pupils were kicked out for taking drugs

More than 700 were excluded for violence towards staff

Heledd Hayes, spokeswoman for NUT Cymru, said a rise in cases of such a severe penalty showed a worrying trend.

She said, ‘It’s definitely disturbing. If it had been a switch from permanent exclusions to fixed- term exclusion, it wouldn’t be so bad, but that doesn’t seem to be the case. It indicates that there is a problem.

‘Nobody likes exclusions, not schools, not teachers, not parents and not pupils, so they are nearly always fairly close to the last resort.

‘Sometimes an exclusion can work well, because it can give a pupil a shock.

‘Correctly used, it can be a useful tool in disciplining a pupil, and making them realise that they are a part of society and, as such, certain types of behaviour are not acceptable.’

The news has sparked fears potential teachers will now be discouraged from entering the profession, due to an increasingly dangerous and unpleasant environment in schools.

In addition to the hundreds of children kicked out for violence and drug abuse, cases of sexual and racial harassment and vandalism also remain high.

William Graham, Conservative education spokesman in the Assembly, warned the Welsh education system could not afford to do anything to alienate future teachers.

He said, ‘It would certainly appear that violence towards teaching staff is on the increase.

‘We want to attract the best people into teaching, and anything that discourages people from becoming teachers is certainly worrying.

‘It’s absolutely essential to protect staff, rather than take a chance by leaving the troublesome pupils in schools.’

An Assembly spokesman attributed the rise to new guidelines for school exclusions issued in September 2003, which encouraged schools to seek alternative methods of dealing with problems ahead of permanent exclusions.

At the time, education minister Jane Davidson said, ‘There is evidence that exclusion disrupts education and can severely damage a child or young person’s life prospects.

‘However, exclusion will be necessary for a minority of pupils when schools can no longer cope with very challenging behaviour.

‘With the proposed changes in procedure we are seeking to balance the interests of all who are affected in these circumstances.’

An Assembly spokesman yesterday said schools had been encouraged to give more pupils a second chance by punishing them with fixed- term suspensions, instead of permanent exclusion.

He said, ‘Rather than permanently excluding a child, which can have massive repercussions on a social level, and in terms of future education and employment, we prefer schools to look at fixed-term exclusions, which gives more of an opportunity for resolving these problems.’

Janet Ryder AM, Plaid Cymru’s spokeswoman on education, said fixed-term exclusions could offer the possibility of better education for the majority of pupils, but urged the Government to ensure children excluded from schools were dealt with properly.

She said, ‘It’s unfortunately not always possible to educate all children together all the time, and excluding them can give other children a better opportunity to learn.

‘But where those children are excluded from school, they tend to be excluded from education, and the Government needs to look carefully and urgently at what they can do with these children, because they are the number one concern for teachers and patients.’

In 2003-04, 37% of children permanently excluded from schools were forced to rely on home tuition – a higher proportion than any year since 1995-96.