ABSTRACT
Since the general election in 1997 the topic of school exclusion has become inextricably linked with the more general issue of social exclusion, now the subject of a number of policy initiatives. The first report of Labour’s Social Exclusion Unit made strong associations between these two types of exclusion and urged a target for reductions in the number of school exclusions: principally a ‘reduction of one third in the number of both permanent and fixed term exclusions from the current level’ by 2002 (1998: para. 5.3; see also HM Government 1999: para 9.27.3). Yet at the same time, Labour’s education policy stresses the need for schools to operate in an appropriately disciplined environment: ‘Most schools are well-ordered communities but it is vital, in the interests of all pupils, that standards of behaviour are improved where they are not satisfactory’ (DFEE 1997a: Chapter 6, para. 13). Exclusion from school is an important sanction used to maintain discipline. So if its use is to be minimized there is a balance to be struck. This is recognized in the revised guidance on exclusions, which states:
Schools must maintain discipline and good conduct to secure an orderly learning environment so that teaching and learning can take place. Schools will therefore need to adopt a range of strategies, including exclusion, to ensure they are providing a sound learning environment for all pupils. But many pupils excluded from school never get back into education and risk exclusion from mainstream society later in life. The number of exclusions from school is unacceptably high, and national and local targets have been set to reduce the number of school exclusions by one third by 2002.
