North Bristol High School issues more than a thousand suspensions per academic year

More than a thousand suspensions were issued at a Bristol secondary school in the last academic year, according to new figures. Blaise High School – where 1,190 suspensions were issued in the 2022/2023 academic year – was the school in the city with the highest number of suspensions per student (131.6 suspensions per 100 students).

Henbury High School also topped the list for school exclusions, with 11 issued in the last academic year. It is followed by Oasis Academy Brightstowe, where there were 900 suspensions in 2022/2023, as well as four expulsions.

The secondary school in Shirehampton – where there were 199.4 suspensions per 100 pupils – is followed by Bridge Learning Campus in Hartcliffe. South Bristol Primary School had 1,047 suspensions issued (90.7 per 100 pupils) as well as six expulsions.

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There have been a record number of suspensions in state schools in England during the 2022/23 academic year. A total of 787,000 suspensions were handed out in schools across the country, up from 578,300 in 2021/22.

That’s a 36% increase in just one year and an 80% increase on 2018/19, the last full year before the Covid-19 pandemic, when there were 438,265 suspensions.

The number of suspensions this year is 9.3 for every 100 students. This is also a record, up from 6.9 per 100 pupils in 2021/22 and 5.4 per 100 in 2018/19.

There were also 9,400 permanent exclusions in the 2022/23 academic year. This is up from 6,500 in 2021/22 and is the highest annual number of permanent exclusions on record.

Minister Stephen Morgan said: “These shocking figures show the massive scale of disruptive behavior that has developed in schools across the country in recent years under the previous government: making working conditions worse for school staff, restricting learning and ultimately damaging life chances of the children. .

“Every student deserves to learn in a safe and calm classroom and we will always support our hardworking and dedicated teachers to make this happen. We are committed to tackling the root causes of bad behaviour: we have already committed to providing access to specialist mental health professionals in every secondary school, introducing free breakfast clubs in every primary school and ensuring earlier intervention in mainstream schools for students. with special needs.

“But we know that bad behavior can also be rooted in wider issues, which is why the Government is developing an ambitious strategy to reduce child poverty, led by a taskforce co-chaired by the Education Secretary, so we can remove barriers to opportunity. “

NASUWT general secretary Dr Patrick Roach said: “We have witnessed a growing crisis of anti-social behavior and violence in schools, which has worsened considerably since the pandemic.

“Lack of adequate support in school and long waiting lists to access specialist services are contributing to a behavior crisis that schools are struggling to contain. Instead of supporting the classroom, teachers are being blamed for student misbehaviour, while many employers are failing to act to ensure the health, safety and welfare of staff working in schools.

“No teacher should expect to go to work and be punched, kicked or spat on. However, many teachers tell us they live in fear of violence and abuse.

“Failure to address violence and abuse in schools today will have long-lasting consequences for the recruitment and retention of teachers and the education of children and young people. The government must also do more to ensure there is zero tolerance for any abuse directed at teachers. .

“NASUWT will continue to take all possible steps to protect its members from workplace violence and abuse. But we need to see action from the government to ensure that all schools and colleges are safe and orderly environments for teachers to teach and children and young people to learn.”

Blaise High School has been approached for comment.