BBC - Special needs pupils 'spend years out of school'

Post Reply New Topic

But unions and teachers have told 5 live Investigates that thousands of children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) are dropping out of education after being "off-rolled" - removed from a school's roll.

'Snowed under'
Lorraine Dormand, is the head at Sam's new school, the National Autistic Society's Robert Ogden School.

She says she is pleased with Sam's progress - but adds that the school is "snowed under" with referrals for autistic children who have been informally and formally excluded from schools.

"It's deeply concerning and is of course very distressing for the children and their families. We are then left to pick up the pieces.

"We are seeing children who have been out of school for years, and the impact can be devastating. It can rob them of their self-confidence.

"They lose faith in the education system, and themselves. As a result of that, and a lack of understanding, too many autistic children end up excluded or off-rolled."

Official figures suggest almost 20,000 GCSE students left school rolls in 2017 - and almost a third had special educational needs.

The true scale of the problem is thought to be much higher, according to the National Education Union (NEU), the UK's leading teaching union.

"We know that SEND kids are around eight times more likely to off-roll. It is a terrible thing and it should not happen," says Dr Mary Bousted, joint general secretary of the NEU.

"This is happening because of a toxic mix of league tables, inspection regimes and lack of funding. The majority of schools do their best. The problem is, some don't.

"I don't condone it. But I'm not surprised by it."

Nearly 4,500 pupils with autism were excluded from school in 2015-16 - a 60% increase since 2011.

Inspectors admit that when pupils are off-rolled, they can't always trace what happens to them.

"In some cases we suspect that school leaders are coercing parents to remove pupils or making decisions that are not in the best interests of the pupils," he added.