ADCS President, Rachel Dickinson has called for the government to review head teachers’ authority to exclude students.
Speaking at the National Children & Adult Services conference Dickinson said ‘“I strongly believe that the government’s education reforms have completely lost sight of inclusion. Let’s not forget that state-funded schools are community assets’.
She continued ‘The new school inspection framework is shining a light on the use of formal and informal exclusions and will hopefully help to turn the tide on rising exclusions…but I think it’s time to review head teachers’ powers to exclude pupils unchecked’.
Calling for a ‘school system that works for all pupils’ she also highlighted the need for schools to pull away from practices such as ‘off-rolling’, ‘strong arming’ parents to home educate and ‘engineering their intake before pupils even on roll’.
Read the full speech here