Member

In theory, intervening early, introducing intervention strategies or undertaking other preventive measures intuitively are vastly preferable to seclusion. Early interventions and strategies work, but they must not be mistaken for a replacement for more serious measures. As many noble Lords will know, disruption is unfortunately a natural part of school life, but it is clear from the evidence that cutting down on seclusions, exclusions and general punitive measures will not fix this. I simply refer to the Scottish Government’s research. Low-level disruptive behaviour has increased since 2006, with serious disruptive behaviour, including verbal abuse, physical aggression and violence towards staff and pupils, on the increase since 2016. That worsening behavioural trend is directly correlated with the loosening of tough behavioural sanctions. Temporary exclusions have decreased consistently by around 70% since 2006.