14 children currently excluded from schools in Dorset
The figure is down on last year, but Dorset Council won't say what it was previously
Permanent exclusions from Dorset schools have fallen – with only 14 pupils currently kept out of the classroom for an indefinite period.
Director of education Vik Verma says the figure means that Dorset is now performing better than many similar authorities although he admits that “fourteen is still fourteen too many and we would like to get it down to zero.”
The improvement, from an undisclosed figure a year ago, has been attributed to better integrated working by social services teams, schools and exclusion and education officers.
Mr Verma said that none of the pupils permanently excluded were of primary school age.
Portfolio holder for education and children’s services Cllr Andrew Parry told Thursday’s people and health overview committee that the most common reason for exclusions was “persistent disruptive behaviour”, which often, when analysed, was at a low level, but taken together made life difficult for teaching staff and fellow pupils.
He said the approach taken was that staff needed to de-escalate situations at the earliest opportunity and do all that they could to ensure the child never got to the stage where permanent exclusion was being considered.
Dorchester councillor, Cllr Stella Jones, a former teacher, questioned whether the level of permanent exclusions might be masked by pupils who were suspended for a temporary period and then suspended again – but the education director said suspensions had shown a similar fall, although he offered no figures to the committee.