New research shows school exclusions intensified in England after COVID-19

The new article, From Locked Down to Shut Out: School Exclusion Patterns Pre and Post COVID-19 in England, is authored by Dr Ian Thompson and Professor Harry Daniels at the University of Oxford’s Department of Education and appears in a Special Issue of Teachers College Record on the pandemic’s impact on education. 

Dr Ian Thompson, Associate Professor of English Education, said: “The Covid-19 pandemic increased educational inequalities and further marginalised disadvantaged pupils already at risk of exclusion from education. 

“Our research shows that both permanent school exclusions and fixed term suspensions have long and short-term consequences in terms of academic achievement, wellbeing, mental health, and future prospects.” 

Drawing on findings from the ESRC-funded project – The Political Economies of School Exclusion Across the UK (2019–2024) – the new article argues that conflicting policies on attainment and inclusion create incentives to exclude rather than support vulnerable students. Using policy analysis and interviews with educators, the study frames exclusion as a pressing equity and diversity issue in post-pandemic schooling. 

Professor Harry Daniels, Emeritus Professor of Education, said: “In our research we found schools whose exclusion figures were lower than expected based on their pupil characteristics were more likely to talk about a culture of inclusion which led to the careful decision-making required to balance risk and opportunities. 

“Where pastoral staff and special educational needs leads worked closely together, schools took a more holistic approach to preventing exclusion.” 

Professor Joseph P. Bishop, Co-founder of the Center for the Transformation of Schools (CTS) at the University of California, Los Angeles and editor of the Special Issue, commended the international impact of this research. He said: “Ian Thompson and Harry Daniels published a study that has tremendous relevance for school exclusion in the United States. Their scholarship reminds us that problematic social and educational patterns are not isolated or unique to the United States.” 

Read the full special issue, The COVID Effect: Unlocking the Education Potential for a Generation of Learners.