SCHOOLCHILDREN from the Romani (Gypsy), Roma, and Irish Traveller communities are being left behind in ways in which have lifelong consequences for themselves and their communities, a report, Fought not Taught, from the Traveller Movement, suggests.
An earlier report identified “off-rolling” —– removing a pupil from the college roll and not using a formal, everlasting exclusion — pressure to home educate, repeated informal removals from the classroom, behavioural management systems, and formal education exclusion processes as disproportionately used against children from these communities.
This report suggests policy solutions to the issue, described in a foreword by the Bishop of Lincoln, the Rt Revd Stephen Conway, as “a matter of justice for many who are excluded in any way and who’re left disposable and and not using a voice which will be heard”.
Its 15 recommendations include a call on Ofsted to review behaviour policies across the country: “a broader shift towards early intervention, contextual understanding and proportionate discipline”. The current inspection, it suggests, “places an excessive amount of emphasis on attainment and attendance, which may often overlook inclusion. We propose that exclusion rates and elective home education withdrawals be included at school inspections, coupled with schools required to justify high figures.”
What is described as “persistent disruptive behaviour” accounted for 176,000 suspensions from school in 2023-24. “Children with overlapping disadvantages are significantly more more likely to experience exclusion,” the report notes. “These include SEND [special educational needs and disabilities] needs, poverty, ethnic minority status and experiences of trauma.” It calls for a shift of focus from punishment to support.
The report calls for alternative education options “that are meaningful and never relegated to lower status. . . There have to be a careful approach to make sure that we usually are not assuming that, for instance, a young Irish Traveller boy would need to work on a constructing site.” It also desires to see accessible online education resources to permit the kids to stay engaged of their education while travelling.
Early years engagement is a priority, the report says. It urges the reintroduction of the Sure Start children’s centres, which brought together early education, childcare and family support under one roof. “Romani, Roma and Traveller families, especially women and kids, experience a few of the most extreme types of stress and adversity,” it says.
“These include higher mortality rates, poverty, poor housing conditions, poor educational outcomes and discrimination when accessing services.” It also calls for a statutory framework for recording and reporting racist bullying. Quotes from a few of the young people surveyed, included “Do you wash?”, “Do you carry different diseases?”, “Are you a witch?”
The report concludes: “Ultimately dismantling coercive exclusions demands a systemic shift in mindset; from ‘managing behaviour’ to ‘understanding need’. It is critical to act now to place an end and be certain that no child is pushed out of a system that ought to exist to support them.”
Bishop Conway, who was lead bishop for education from 2014 to 2019, hosted the launch of the report last week. “We must act now to be certain that no child experiences a life devoid of opportunity due to an absence of daring and inventive pondering,” he said.
“The report also highlights necessary and powerful work that many teachers and schools are doing. However, they’re doing it despite, not due to, current policy and practice.”
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