‘But what do the statistics say?’ An overview of permanent school exclusions in England

ABSTRACT This article explores and presents various statistics regarding permanent school exclusions in England. Publically available national data, e.g. Permanent and fixed-period exclusions in England (Department for Education, 2021a), are used to identify patterns and thus provide an overview of the number, profile and characteristics (considering variables such as gender, ethnicity) of the population of children and young people permanently excluded in England. The article does not seek to explain the trends, rather it presents them as a ‘where are we’ picture of permanent exclusions in England. It is important to have such an overview in order to contextualise the English education system and view the implications of policy for practice relating to exclusions as demonstrated through pupil numbers and proportionality. The analysis highlights issues of disproportionality and the characteristics of students permanently excluded as well as revealing the ‘under counting’ of those who are excluded. The discussion explores issues around disproportionality, relating these to broader educational issues. Suggestions are made as to how to accurately account for all children and young people who are permanently excluded or ‘off-rolled’.