Agenda item

To review School Exclusions in Westminster schools.

6.1       The Committee received a report on the current data on school exclusions in Westminster schools with comparisons again the most recent national and London benchmarks.  The Committee noted the work that schools and services were already undertaking to prevent exclusions, the provision that was available for children who were excluded from schools and the additional actions being taken by the Council.

6.2       The Committee welcomed Ruth Browne, Director of Intervention & School Services at the TBAP Multi Academy Trust, who described the work of the Early Intervention Centre located off the Harrow Road.  She advised that her staff worked with children who were at risk of permanent exclusion by using close intervention to re-engage with those children. She explained how a child came to be at Beachcroft, as a result of a managed move, often where the school and parents considered that a child would benefit from a fresh start.

6.3       The Committee further welcomed Wasim Butt, TBAP Principal for both Beachcroft in St John’s Wood and Latimer in RBKC, who described the factors that might lead to a young person being permanently excluded.  He advised that the incident could include a serious one-off incident, such as involving a knife, or more persistent disruptive behaviour, family break up or low aspirations, or a combination of these.  Wasim also outlined the work that his staff carried out such as obtaining an EHCP for a vulnerable child and finding suitable school placements for young people.

6.4       The Committee discussed why the number of fixed term exclusions in Westminster secondary schools had increased in the last three years and were above the national average. The Committee heard about the funding pressures on schools, the high waiting lists for vital services such as CAMHS, the increase in SEN children in mainstream schools and the resistance from parents to engage with social services. The Committee noted that the number of fixed term exclusions in primary school had decreased in the last three years and were below the national average.

6.5       The Committee were pleased that the exclusion rates for young people with special educational needs (SEN) in 2017/2018 was lower than the national rate and that no Westminster SEN children with Education Health Care Plans (EHCPs) from either primary or secondary schools had received a permanent exclusion in 2017/18.

6.6       The key themes that emerged from the Committee discussion were:

• the importance and sustainable of the Early Help Social Inclusion Pilot that worked intensively with vulnerable families to prevent school exclusion.
• the benefits of the discretionary provision given to special schools for group funding for children in the high need block.
• the complexities of permanent school exclusion, including the increase in problems with drug and knife crime, school refusal and the school curriculum,
• the pressure on schools to achieve high examination results and the need for a holistic approach to education.
• the importance of providing vocational courses and apprenticeships for young people who found it difficult to participate in an academic curriculum.

6.7       The Chairman thanked everyone who had given up their time to attend the meeting and contribute to the discussion.

6.8       ACTION

1.     The Committee requested a briefing note on the demographics of the children/young people that had been permanently excluded from Westminster Schools.  The information should include: age, ethnicity, sex, reason(s) why and what happened to them after they were excluded from school.

6.9       RESOLVED: The Committee concluded with the following comments, which would be forwarded to the Cabinet Member for Economic Development, Education and Skills:

1. That schools and services continue to work closely together to prevent school exclusions and that appropriate provision continues to be made available for both young people at risk of school exclusion and pupils that had been permanently excluded. 

2. That the Council continue to evaluate the reasons behind school exclusions in Westminster and how it could provide quick access to vital services that could prevent vulnerable young people being permanently excluded from school.

3. That adequate educational provision be provided for excluded pupils along with a range of vocational courses and apprenticeship opportunities for young people Post 16.