Schools Are Failing Our Most Vulnerable Children
The latest Department for Education figures paint a worrying picture
In the 2023‑24 academic year, there were over 10,900 permanent exclusions from state schools in England; a 16 percent rise on the year before. Alongside there were nearly 955,000 suspension days, a 21 percent increaseon the previous year. Even more troubling are the youngest pupils: 471 children aged six or under were expelled, and more than 100,000 primary school suspensions were recorded for the first time. Something is going very, very wrong in the UK’s education system.
While many are quick to blame "increasingly poor behaviour”, lax parenting (often gentle parenting!) and feral children, the truth is, school discipline is now more strict than it has been for decades. Is there perhaps a link here? That rather than the supposed permissive parenting occuring everywhere, the actual issues are far more about how schools are attempting to control children these days? Or are the problems more related to how the system doesn’t support the needs of children with special educational needs? I think it’s likely an amalgamation of the two, though of course it’s far easier to try to blame parents than look at the real issues.
The Underlying Problem?
Of those children permanently excluded in the recently released figures, more than half had special educational needs (SEN), including over 1,000 with Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs). These figures reveal a profound failure to support our most vulnerable children and a huge degree of disability discrimination. When schools lean on zero‑tolerance policies and isolation booths, they neglect the root causes: undiagnosed neurodivergence, trauma, anxiety, or family stress (and often a mix of all).
Zero tolerance clearly isn’t working. Tom Bennett, the government’s behaviour tsar, has long advocated for strict discipline; silent corridors, no uniform leniency, and immediate consequences for rule-breaking (for consequences, read punishment. Consequences are just the new buzz word). Despite this, statistics show that this “tough love” approach isn’t yielding results. Exclusions and suspensions are soaring, and behaviour isn’t improving. In fact, for many children it’s getting worse. A study by Hull and Bristol universities revealed that teens permanently excluded are twice as likely to commit serious violence within a year .
Lunchtime and after school detentions see the same children cooped up in classrooms day after day (the irony that they are often the children who so desperately need more fresh air and free movement is not lost). If these punishments worked this wouldn’t happen. The zero tolerance consequences would be a ‘one and done’ type thing if they were effective. Instead, these children almost accept that this is their fate. There’s no point them trying, they may as well just accept never-ending cycle of detentions for the remainder of their time at school. Is it any wonder that so many leave education at 16 with few qualifications and no desire to move onto further education or apprenticeships?
The problem here isn’t parenting, it’s what’s happening in educational institutions. We’re letting too many vulnerable children slip through the gaps and we’re piling too much pressure on teachers who are over-worked, under-paid and not supported anywhere near enough. A five‑year‑old permanently expelled from school risks a lifetime of anxiety, school refusal, and marginalisation. One in two excluded primary pupils fail to gain GCSE passes in English and Maths. Teens pushed out of education are far more likely to enter a life of crime. Things must change, urgently. If it doesn’t, the future societal cost will be huge.
Families and teachers pay the heavy price
Soaring rates of home education see families paying the price for governmental mistakes. Countless parents are being driven into home education, not by choice but by necessity (I’m a huge home ed fan, but when parents and children make an informed choice to do so - choice being the operative word, that isn’t happenning for many left with no alternatives). Schools unwilling or unable to adapt leave families with little option but to remove their children from mainstream education. EOTAS provision often accounts for no more than 2 hours a week with a tutor. It’s not enough. These children deserve far better than being labelled “naughty” or “disruptive” and sidelined. They deserve support within the system, not removal from it.
Teachers are faring no better. Reports show that over 39,000 teachers left the profession during 2022–23, with nearly two‑thirds citing workload and stress as key reasons . A Department for Education survey reveals teachers working on average 52 hours per week, with 36 percent considering leaving in the next year. In large multi‑academy trusts, up to one in five staff quit annually, with many citing burnout. This exodus deepens staff shortages and weakens the emotional support network these vulnerable children desperately need.
What we could do instead
We need a nurturing, holistic approach to transform behaviour, but it requires investment and patience. In my new book RAISING ATTENTION there is a whole chapter on how I would make some small, low-cost, changes in school settings to make a real difference to children, teachers and parents. These changes can be implemented easily and cheaply at local school levels. Then there’s ‘the big stuff’ that needs to change from the top down, including:
Early support for SEN and neurodiversity
Half of exclusions involve SEN children. If early screening, diagnosis and tailored support were available, many crises could be prevented.Mental health and behaviour teams in schools
Schools need on‑site counsellors and learning mentors working hand‑in‑hand with teachers.Restore nurture and relational approaches
Isolation booths and zero tolerance are not working, in fact they make things worse. Instead, relational teaching and restorative practice build trust and emotional understanding.Flexible learning pathways
Part‑time vocational programmes, small group support, and mentoring keep young people engaged.Better support and coordination across agencies
Families facing hardship including poverty, housing instability, mental health issues and the like need more support. Improviding educational outcomes also means improving other areas of society and our benefits system.
As well as these changes, We must:
Trust teachers to teach, not police. Discipline should be relational, not punitive, especially for children who find routine and rules hard. There must be more support for teachers, better training, better work-life balance and working as a team with parents.
Champion early, bespoke support. Identifying and supporting children with SEND, trauma and poverty earlier to prevent behavioural crises.
Champion nurture, not zero‑tolerance. Isolation booths don’t heal; trained pastoral support does. We need far more investment in the latter. For any teachers reading, look into THRIVE training, or When the Adults Change training. I’d also strongly recommend the Walking Tour for Educators by Lives in the Balance.
A Rallying call to arms
We’re at a crossroads right now. We can continue a path that excludes, punishes and disengages our most vulnerable. Or we can choose compassion and commitment. We can invest in children, families, teachers and mental health services and rebuild inclusive schooling.
Every child deserves to learn, belong and be seen. Educational success is when every child, no matter how struggling, feels supported, not expelled from the system entirely.
If this spoke to you and you want to learn more about tackling challenging school behaviour in a system that is not set up for the needs of all children, whether you’re a parent or a teacher, my new book RAISING ATTENTION is for you.
Sarah