Most local authorities provide support for children and schools via the Behaviour Hub. The programme can be very effective in helping schools to improve their behaviour culture.
There is no cost to schools at the point of access and children are supported while remaining in their classrooms, rather than withdrawn from lessons to work with professionals in isolation.
However, children are sometimes referred for support when disruptive or challenging behaviour is long-established and much more difficult to manage. Some of these children will have already been excluded from school.
Permanent & Fixed Term Exclusions Data in England 2018 (latest data due to Covid-19)
The exclusions data shows that children who have had permanent and fixed-term exclusions are likely to be adversely affected by issues outside of their control.
Long waiting lists result in missed diagnoses for physical, medical and mental health conditions. The data also illustrates that the majority of children who receive fixed-term exclusions do so repeatedly.
In addition, research by the University of Edinburgh shows that the male prison population includes 63% of inmates who were excluded from school. Pupils excluded from school at 12 are four times as likely as other children to be sent to prison as adults.
The trajectory for children who are excluded from school isn't good. An increase in challenging behaviour is common, with longstanding learned behaviour being very difficult to self-regulate while in or outside of the setting. We need to break the cycle - and soon.
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