£21,000 per permanent exclusion?

As this story continues to reverberate, Schools Week are reporting that Jack Newton, newly appointed Interim Deputy Director, Head of Inclusion and Learning at Devon County Council, has told headteachers the plans to introduce an exclusion levy were extremely unlikely to happen.

Schools Week report that in a meeting on Friday with heads he said “I don’t think we should go ahead with this”. “That’s my response to the proposal. I don’t think we’re ready for this kind of measure.” “How would you implement something that is potentially legally dubious, has caused this level of unrest, and maybe doesn’t even solve the problem it was designed to?”

The plan was part of a wider Devon Schools Finance Consultation, which explained that rising exclusion rates were no longer affordable. The consultation has now closed and the responses will be analysed and considered in January, at the Devon Education Forum.

Schools Week report that he also told heads they “have to do something different” and all “take collective responsibility”. “Many schools do whatever it takes to try and include the children in front of us, but let’s not pretend that we’re all doing that, because it’s not true.”

Schools Week notes that councils are not permitted to levy a charge on exclusions. However, councillor Andrew Leadbetter, the cabinet member for schools, is reported to have said that the plan was to “…enter into local agreements with schools to ensure the best results for our children”. He added: “We understand that other local authority areas also seek to reach local agreements to address the issue.” “We are listening to schools, but there are too many young people being permanently excluded from Devon schools.”