July 27, 2023, East Anglian Daily Times: Suffolk rates number one for primary school suspensions https://www.eadt.co.uk/news/23680161.suffolk-rates-number-one-primary-school-suspensions/
SE England
More than 400 students aged five and under were suspended from school in Suffolk, as the region is revealed to have the highest primary school suspension rate in England.
This is the seventh year in a row that Suffolk's primary school suspension rates have been ranked in the top three of the country.
1,895 suspensions were made across the 2021/22 academic year for primary, secondary and special schools - a figure which has doubled over the past ten years.
Mitigating factors such as special education needs and disabilities (SEND) and receipt of free school meals impact the likelihood of students being suspended and excluded.
For example, SEND primary school children received three times as many permanent exclusions and were 16 times more likely to receive a suspension….
Jack Abbott, former Labour education spokesman at Suffolk County Council and current Labour parliamentary candidate, said: "Something is clearly going badly wrong for the county to be consistently ranked as one of the worst areas in the country, with vulnerable children being disproportionately affected….
