Thomson, Juliette;
(2020)
Exploring the experiences of school exclusion for looked after children and young people.
Doctoral thesis (D.Ed.Psy), UCL (University College London).
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Abstract
Statutory guidance from the Department for Education places a duty on local authorities in England to safeguard and promote the welfare and educational achievement of looked after children and young people (LACYP). Accordingly, head teachers should, as far as possible, avoid excluding any LACYP. Nonetheless, LACYP are five times more likely to have a fixed-period exclusion than their non-looked after peers (DfE, 2020). LACYP currently lag behind their non-looked after peers on several educational outcome measures. They are also more likely to experience homelessness, high unemployment and be involved with the criminal justice system. Despite their detrimental effects, currently fixed-period exclusion rates for LACYP are rising year on year with no consensus on how best to prevent them. To date, few recent studies have explored the school exclusion experiences of LACYP. Using Bronfenbrenner’s (2005) bioecological systems framework, this study adopts a multi-informant approach to explore the experiences of school exclusion for LACYP from a range of perspectives. Semi-structured interviews were carried out with eleven LACYP. In addition, interviews were conducted with carers (5), a Special Educational Needs Coordinator, a Virtual School Head, and Educational Psychologists (10) to better understand their perceptions of the wider systemic influences on school exclusions. The findings illustrated an overwhelmingly negative narrative from the LACYP associated with their school exclusions. Key themes included: a lack of advocacy and not being listened to; a mismatch between young people and adult expectations/aspirations; and that psychological containment, a sense of school belonging and a positive sense of identity were not nurtured within their secondary schools. Further negative consequences associated with school exclusions included poor mental health, involvement in drugs and crime as well as continued social and economic exclusion as care leavers. Implications for policy and practice at a school, Local Authority (including Educational Psychology Services) and national level are discussed.
| Type: | Thesis (Doctoral) |
|---|---|
| Qualification: | D.Ed.Psy |
| Title: | Exploring the experiences of school exclusion for looked after children and young people |
| Event: | Institute of Education, UCL (University College London) |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | Copyright © The Author [year]. Original content in this thesis is licensed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) Licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Any third-party copyright material present remains the property of its respective owner(s) and is licensed under its existing terms. Access may initially be restricted at the author’s request. |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Education UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Education > UCL Institute of Education UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Education > UCL Institute of Education > IOE - Psychology and Human Development |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10107937 |
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