Transforming outcomes for children at risk of exclusion

School exclusion is not simply an educational matter, but a complex systemic issue that goes beyond education and disproportionately affects a small cohort of vulnerable pupils. Many pupils experience exclusion in multiple ways during their school life. This goes beyond formal permanent exclusions and suspensions, which currently dominate policy and the media narrative, to include persistent absence, managed moves, school moves, and ​‘early exits’.

Social Finance is bringing a local-systems perspective to support earlier intervention for children and young people at risk of exclusion.

• Children and young people living in high levels of deprivation are twice as likely to receive multiple exclusions and are at greater risk of all types of exclusion (we use a comprehensive definition of exclusion to include a variety of ways that pupils may be removed from mainstream education).
• At-risk children have multiple needs below thresholds for schools to access additional support; the funding system fails to meet the realities of the lives of these children.
• The extent of exclusion from school is greater than headline statistics suggest, with gendered implications.

Figures from the autumn term 2021/22 reveal an increase in permanent exclusions and suspensions compared to the previous autumn term. Despite exclusion rates being lower than pre-pandemic levels, the long-term impact of Covid-19 restrictions are still unknown.

There is a small cohort of those with contact with social care and / or SEMH needs who represent just 15% of pupils yet account for 58% of multiple suspensions. There is a ​‘cliff-edge’ group who may not meet any singular threshold for additional support and are at higher risk of exclusion since the pandemic that our programme is seeking to help.

Our vision is for an inclusive, coordinated and proactive system. A system that maximises access to education will enable: 

Belonging

Children and young people, regardless of their needs, feel they belong and can prosper.

Timely support

Parents / carers can access the right support for their child when they need it, as early as possible, to keep them within mainstream schooling when that is the right place for them.

Inclusion

Teachers and schools can create inclusive learning environments by getting support from the wider system for pupils who need it to relieve pressure.

Holistic working

The local system incentivises and enables stakeholders to work together to provide children, parents / carers and schools with effective holistic support.

Working in partnership with Cheshire West and Chester Council and Gloucestershire County Council, we are: 

• Building infrastructure across local systems that enables multi-agency working.
• Creating local, evidence-based marketplaces for preventative and reactive interventions.
• Using data analysis to understand who is at risk of exclusion and how the impact of Covid-19 is being felt by vulnerable children.

Our programme brings additional capacity into the local system to relieve pressure from schools and teachers and to coordinate the local support offer. We have built partnerships with Cheshire West & Chester Council and Gloucestershire County Council, who are both thinking innovatively about addressing rising school exclusions. In Cheshire West and Chester we are working with Power2, a charity working with children and young people to improve wellbeing and school engagement.

While the initial pilot implementation is focused in specific areas within the partner local authorities, we are looking to scale the model to other parts of the local system. Over the course of the pilot, the team will be focusing on gathering the required evidence to make the case for this.

In parallel to the local pilot delivery, we are engaging with key stakeholders at the national level to ensure on-the-ground practice and evidence feeds back up to national decision makers and across to others working in the sector.