State-funded school suspensions on rise

“WE are unapologetic in raising our expectations when it comes to behaviour. High standards of behaviour are the bedrock of any successful school.”

- By ROB PARSONS

That was the response from Alsop High School in the Walton area of Liverpool when asked about new figures showing 1,874 suspensions were handed out there in the 2023/24 academic year the equivalent of almost 10 pupils a day.

The total is higher than at any other state-funded secondary school in Merseyside.

But, as data journalist David Dubas-Fisher found out when he dug into the latest Department for Education stats, there are a few schools where even more pupils are being temporarily removed as a disciplinary measure.

Some 3,174 suspensions were handed out at the Coop Academy Grange in Bradford, which works out as nearly 17 a day.

And Outwood Academy in Normanby on Teesside had a rate of 14 a day handing out 348 suspensions for every 100 pupils at the school.