NEARLY 30,000 pupils have been suspended from schools in Surrey, with hundreds more being permanently expelled for assault, drug and alcohol-related incidents and sexual misconduct.
According to the information, which is held by Surrey County Council and was released to the Mirror following a Freedom of Information request, at least 29,625 pupils have been suspended and 343 more expelled in the past five years.
The most common reason for expulsion is persistent disruptive behaviour, with 164 incidents recorded since the 2008/9 academic year.
Physical assault against fellow pupils is the second most common cause, with 65 pupils being expelled for this reason in the last five years.
With 7,668 incidents, disruptive behaviour is also the most common reason for a pupil to be suspended, with 6,811 incidents of threatening behaviour and verbal abuse against adults coming in second. Ron Searle, head teacher at The Warwick School in Redhill, moved to reassure parents that pupils' behaviour is improving.
He said schools in the Reigate and Banstead borough had done a good job working together to reduce the number of exclusions – both temporary and permanent – and said a lot had been done to improve the reputation of local schools.
Mr Searle, whose own school was recently rated as "outstanding" by Ofsted inspectors when it came to pupil behaviour, added that a number of initiatives had been put in place to help disruptive pupils, and that while in his first year as head in 2006 he expelled 16 pupils, only one was expelled last year.
He added: "Something that Surrey began and what we've worked hard on is the Surrey Alternative Learning Programme.
"That impacted on reducing exclusions due to the collaboration between schools."
He added: "Most exclusions these days are a result of one-off incidents which schools might decide they can't deal with. No school will willingly exclude a student. We'll go a long way to help before we get to that point."
Surrey County Council spokeswoman Joy Ridley said the authority worked closely with schools to help promote good behaviour, and assisted schools in managing pupils.
"We provide education for more than 140,000 children, and excellent progress has been made over the past few years in reducing the number of permanent exclusions," she added.
"We work with Surrey head teachers through the Surrey Alternative Learning Programme to ensure all young people at risk of exclusion receive the support they need."
Pupil behaviour is one of the key performance indicators used by school inspectors.
According to Ofsted, when inspectors analyse the behaviour of pupils they take into account their attitudes to learning, their behaviour around the school and in lessons, including the level of disruption, their attitude towards other pupils and adults, and how expectations of behaviour are managed along with the school's management of consistent good behaviour.
A spokesman for the education watchdog said inspectors regularly request records of exclusions and incidents of poor behaviour.
