The
Chair of the Task and Finish Group, Councillor Jerry Fitzpatrick
introduced the item and outlined details in a
Presentation
Following the presentation, Members had the opportunity to ask
questions
During the consideration of the recommendations, the Committee
discussed the following:
-
It was difficult to evidence off rolling in schools
the Local Authority did not hold school registers as it was not
compulsory for schools to provide this data, additionally if it was
provided there was no resource available to monitor in the way and
level of detail required. There was however concerns on all level
including central government of the issue.
-
It was important to understand the term ‘Off
rolling’ in order to comprehend the issue it presented. There
were currently several legal ways in which a child could come off
the school roll. Off rolling is not a legal tern and it’s a
school initiated removal of a child without having gone through the
legal process.
-
On the issue of reintegration back into mainstream school of children
referred to Pupil Referral Units (PRU), there was no headline
figure and in 2019 the number of children was extremely
low.
-
Managed moves occurred for very young children and
across the borough there appeared to be different practices within
Fair Access Panels (FAP). Guidance on processes needed to be
clearer to ensure practices were transparent and
streamlined
-
The evidence showed very positive arrangements
between primary schools, in particular the inclusion peer group
working between schools to keep children in school which had
resulted in very few primary school exclusions
-
There were some schools that stood out in the level
of pupils that left the school and some schools that had high
vacancies and as a result would accept children that had been
excluded more readily. This in turn meant the schools faced
multifaceted challenges as they may not necessarily have the
expertise to deal with the challenges that come with the
children.
-
There was evidence to support that a high proportion
of children that went through managed moves were documented as
having special educational needs, emotional and mental health
issues, had experienced child sexual exploitation or gang activity
as well as many other issues.
-
It was evident that the challenges faced by officers
should be shared at school governor level as many were not aware of
the challenges experienced by officers on gathering information or
of trying to get headteachers to
accurately share data.
-
It was encouraging that an information pack for
parents and families on their rights was being
developed
The
sub-committee endorsed all the recommendations made
The
Sub-Committee RESOLVED: To agree the
recommendations as set out in the report:
Recommendations One to Six (to the Director of
Education)
Recommendation One
That the Scrutiny and
Overview Children and Young People Sub Committee seek from the
Director of Education an annual report on Exclusions and Managed
Moves, such report to be presented at an Autumn meeting
and separate from the Standards report, the report to
include the following areas at least in relation to managed
moves:
The
number of managed moves agreed by the Fair Access Panel in the
preceding academic year, including the provision of data as
to the following characteristics of the children concerned:
age, gender, free school meal eligibility,
national curriculum year, SEND provision, ethnic group and
level of deprivation - these are the characteristics which must be
reported in respect of permanent exclusion
- the number of managed moves from a mainstream school to a PRU or
other alternative provision
- the number of managed moves from a mainstream school to another
mainstream school
- the number of managed moves which broke down during the 12 weeks
probationary period
- an
analysis of the reasons for the breakdown during the probationary
period and information about the subsequent pathways of the
children concerned
- the number of children reintegrated from alternative provision
into mainstream, broken down into the number reintegrated who
immediately prior to admission to AP had undergone permanent
exclusion and the number reintegrated who immediately prior to
admission to AP had undergone a managed move
- in
respect of managed moves to mainstream schools the number from each
presenting school, and the number to each receiving
school
- such information as the local authority may possess about the
number of managed moves not passing through the FAP process,
including the characteristics set out in the first bullet point
above
- the chart of givers and takers (that is, for each school,
the number of children each school successfully presents to
FAP, and the number each school accepts)
- the destinations of children who have been permanently
excluded
Recommendation Two
The
Director prepares a paper on managed moves for the consideration of
key stakeholders in FAP which sets out factors perceived to conduce
to both good and bad outcomes, and including some objective case
studies
Recommendation Three
- The Director instigates an independent evaluation of how
participants perceive the collegiality of the managed moves
process, and what might be done to enhance it.
Recommendation Four
- The Director requests headteachers who are invited to the FAP to include
information about the number of managed moves to and from their
school in their termly report to their governing body, such as data
to include all managed moves whether brokered through the FAP or in
some other way.
Recommendation Five
- The Governor Supports Team briefs secondary school governors on
managed moves and provides guidance as to how they might scrutinise
the issue.
Recommendation
Six
- The Director requests that the headteachers notify the Local Authority of a maned
move they have arranged other than through FAP, such notification
to be provided by the headteacher of
the presenting school immediately after a starting date for the
move has been agreed by all relevant parties.
Recommendations Seven and Eight (to the Secretary of State for
Education)
Recommendation Seven
- There should be statutory or at least non-statutory guidance to
school admissions authorities on the subject of managed
moves.
Recommendation Eight
- There should be consideration of whether paragraph 3.16 of the
statutory guidance for school admission authorities should be
extended to refer to managed moves so that (the suggested inserted
words are highlighted) the relevant part reads as follows:”
no school should be asked to take a disproportionate number of
children who have been permanently excluded from other schools, who
display challenging behaviour, who are placed via the Protocol,
or who have been admitted as the result of a managed
move”
Recommendations Nine and Ten (to Her Majesty’s Chief
Inspector of Schools)
Recommendation Nine
- The secondary school inspection framework should encompass
managed moves
Recommendation 10
- Consideration should be given in the HMCI’s Annual Report
to the provision of an overview of how schools are using managed
moves