The number of suspensions and exclusions reached record highs in England’s state schools in 2023-24, according to from the Department for Education.
The number of suspensions neared 1 million for the first time, hitting 954,952 last academic year, the highest number on record and up 21 per cent on the previous year (786,961).
This was equivalent to a suspension rate of 11.3 per 100 pupils, up from 9.33 in 2022-23.
The number of permanent exclusions crossed the 10,000 threshold for the first time (10,885), up 16.1 per cent on the year prior (9,376). The permanent exclusion rate per 100 pupils was 0.13, also an all-time high, and up from 0.11 in 2022-23.
Gender and FSM breakdowns
Boys (7,695) were again more likely to be permanently excluded than girls (3,190), with the gap widening as male permanent exclusions increased by 18.7 per cent compared with 10.2 per cent for girls.
However, while boys (600,401) remain more likely to be suspended than girls (354,551), the gap narrowed slightly with a 24.3 per cent increase for girls, compared with a 19.7 per cent increase for boys.
Those receiving free school meals (FSM) are still suspended at an increased rate compared with those who are not eligible for FSM.
Some 573,538 pupils eligible for FSM were suspended in 2023-24, up 31.6 per cent from the year prior.
In comparison, 381,414 non-FSM pupils were suspended in 2023-24, up just 8.6 per cent year-on-year.
Those eligible for FSM (6,929) were also more likely to be permanently excluded than those who were not eligible (3,956). This gap also widened, with those eligible for FSM and permanently excluded up 19.6 per cent year-on-year, compared with 10.5 per cent for those not eligible for FSM.
Faster increase in primary
Primary school suspensions and exclusions rose to 106,265, a new record and up 24.3 per cent on 2022-23. This was faster than the rate of increase in secondary (20.9 per cent) and special schools (20.7 per cent).
Over 36,000 exclusions and suspensions were recorded for children aged six years and under - a 29 per cent increase on the previous year.
Chance UK warned that this increase in primary schools is disproportionately affecting children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) and children who receive FSM. The charity’s that 97 per cent of those excluded in primary are children with SEND.
The charity’s director, Sophie Schmal, called the figures “shocking”.
She said: “When you have children as young as five and six years old being permanently excluded from school, then clearly something is going very wrong.
“Every day, we see children and families being let down by a system that is failing to support them early enough…The support and funding that the most vulnerable children require to thrive in a school setting needs to be a priority for this government and we cannot afford to let these children fall through the cracks.”
Rise for pupils with SEND
For pupils with an education, health and care plan (EHCP), suspensions increased by 31.7 per cent compared with the previous year, crossing the 100,000 barrier for the first time (101,381).
The number of permanent exclusions for pupils with EHCPs increased by 46.2 per cent compared with 2022-23 to 1,044 (a rate of 0.26 per 100 pupils).
The number of suspensions for pupils receiving SEN support increased by 25.5 per cent year-on-year, reaching 330,908. This was equivalent to a huge 5.01 increase in the rate per 100 pupils.
The exclusion rate for pupils with SEN support increased by 15.9 per cent to 4,639, an increase of just 0.04 in the rate per 100 pupils.
North East had highest rate of suspension
The region with the highest number of suspensions was Yorkshire and the Humber (139,722), with the highest rate of suspension found in the North East (18.42).
The region with the largest percentage increase in suspensions was the South West, where it rose 29.3 per cent from 90,257 in 2022-23 to 116,709 in 2023-24.
The number of permanent exclusions was highest in the North West (2,065), while the rate was highest in the North East (0.25).
The North East also had the largest increase in permanent exclusions, up 26.9 per cent from 783 in 2022-23 to 994 in 2023-24.
Call for schools to receive ‘back-up’
Paul Whiteman, general secretary of the NAHT school leaders’ union, said that schools have a duty to provide a safe environment and use suspensions and exclusions only when all other options have been exhausted.
“The reasons for disruptive behaviour often lie beyond the school gates and have their roots in wider challenges, including everything from poverty to access to support with SEND and mental ill-health,” he said.
Mr Whiteman called for additional support for schools, which he said cannot address poor behaviour alone.
”[Schools] need back-up in the shape of additional investment in vital services like social care, children’s mental health, behaviour support teams and special educational needs provision, which have been reduced or failed to keep up with demand over the last decade,” he said.
Education minister Stephen Morgan said: “With almost 1 million suspensions in the 2023 academic year, the evidence is clear that this government’s inheritance was classrooms in chaos, with swathes of the next generation cut off from the opportunity to get on in life.”
He added that the Labour government has “wasted no time in tackling the root causes of poor behaviour”, citing the launch of attendance and behaviour hubs, which are set to support 500 schools.
Tes revealed last week that the DfE has failed to appoint the inaugural attendance and behaviour ambassadors by its own publicly stated deadline. The ambassadors will oversee the merged hubs, which are due to start in September.
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