Updated: Doncaster school excludes pupils more often than any other in England

Department for Education figures show there were a total of 5,849 permanent or temporary exclusions across the 127 state schools in Doncaster in the 2020-21 academic year.

This works out at a rate of 12.4 exclusions for every 100 pupils – one of the highest rates in England.

And of the 119 schools in the area with at least 100 pupils, this rate was highest at Astrea Academy Woodfields – a state-funded secondary school.

The Secondary sponsor led academy ordered two permanent exclusions and 971 temporary exclusions – a rate of 127 per 100 pupils.

This means it issued more exclusions than it has pupils, giving it the highest exclusion rate of the almost 19,000 schools in England.

At 113.9, Outwood Academy Danum also had one of the highest rates in the country.

At the other end of the scale, 47 schools in the area did not exclude a single pupil.

Around 37 per cent of schools across England did not suspend or permanently exclude any students in 2020-21, while almost a dozen issued more exclusions than they have pupils.

The Children’s Society said there may be a number of reasons for the wide discrepancies in exclusion numbers between schools.

Iryna Pona, policy and impact manager for the organisation, said: "Behavioural issues that could lead to exclusion, are often an indicator of larger issues children are experiencing, such as unmet special educational needs, bullying, abuse or exploitation.

“Some schools may have more children that require additional support, some may lack resources or awareness and training so they don’t know how to support the child and tackle any issues before resorting to excluding.

“Whatever the reason, the numbers show that there is the lack of consistent child centred approach that allows for the needs of the child to be understood and supported across all schools in the same way that would reduce the number of exclusions."

She also called for stronger government guidance that requires schools to work with partners in social care and the community to ensure greater oversight of exclusion decisions.

The schools with the highest exclusion rates in Doncaster in 2020-21 were:

Astrea Academy Woodfields – state-funded secondary – 127 exclusions per 100 pupils

Outwood Academy Danum – state-funded secondary – 113.9

Ash Hill Academy – state-funded secondary – 94.5

Outwood Academy Adwick – state-funded secondary – 55.3

The Laurel Academy – state-funded secondary – 44.9

All academies were approached for a comment, we received two responses. A spokesperson for Astrea Academy Woodfields who said: “The vast majority of our students are a credit to our school community and help to make our school a safe and enjoyable place to learn.

"A minority of our students account for a significant proportion of exclusions. These are too high and our school leaders are working hard to support all our students to meet our high expectations.

“Our students have a clear understanding of the incremental approach that we take before an exclusion is decided, including opportunities to reflect and to improve their behaviour.

“It is our priority to ensure that all lessons are disruption-free, and that communal areas are safe and happy places for all students to be.”

AN Outwood Grange Academies Trust spokesperson said: "At Outwood, our key aim is to create a positive and happy ethos and culture where our students behave well, value their education, and are safe, responsible and respectful to everyone in our shared community.

“Of course, there are occasions where behaviour is unsatisfactory and we recognise that young people will make mistakes, however, unsatisfactory behaviour within our academies will neither be ignored nor tolerated as it impacts upon the amount and the quality of learning taking place in our classrooms. The vast majority of our parents and carers expect no less.

“Our staff set high expectations which inspire, motivate and challenge students. Before any formal sanctions are issued, staff will exhaust all strategies and interventions to manage behaviour for learning. We recognise that some of our students will need to be taught how to behave appropriately within the school community. All our students will study our ACE (Academy Conduct and Expectations) programme when they join the school to ensure they understand what is required of them.

“The focus of sanctions is not to be punitive but to provide guidance to students so they can make positive changes and have opportunities for both self-reflection and to repair any harm caused. Reasonable adjustments will always be made for students who have additional needs."

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