School exclusions on rise in Warwickshire

Exclusions at Warwickshire’s schools have increased by 11% since 2013, as police chiefs have warned this could be contributing to a surge in knife crime.

Police commissioners from seven forces across England and Wales have written to Prime Minister Theresa May, calling for urgent action to fix the “broken” school system.

The letter – which was co-signed by the Police and Crime Commissioner for West Midlands Police – argues that exclusions put vulnerable children at risk of being sucked into violent crime.

In 2016-17, secondary schools in Warwickshire handed out 1,983 exclusions to children, the latest Department for Education data shows.

This was a rate of six exclusions for every 100 pupils.

“Clearly, the way the education system deals with excluded young people is broken,” the police chiefs’ letter reads.