Episode 23 - The Difference

School exclusions is an issue right at the top of the government’s agenda currently, and it’s no wonder why. After a period of steady decline in the number of pupils being excluded from school, in recent years we have begun to see a worrying reversal in that trend. The government’s own data suggests the rate of exclusions is rising to almost 7,000 a year in England, the equivalent of more than 35 permanent exclusions every school day. Rising rates of exclusion not only have a significant impact on the individuals and schools concerned, but it also has a long-term impact on society too. Research has shown that every cohort of permanently excluded pupils will go on to cost the state an extra £2.1billion in education, health, benefits and criminal justice costs. A new education charity, The Difference, founded by former teacher Kiran Gill is determined to do something about this alarming trend. Through their 2 year ‘Difference Leader’ programme, the charity offers existing leaders in mainstream schools the opportunity to work for two years in an Alternative Provision setting. Throughout the programme leaders benefit not only from gaining experience in AP but also from an intensive accredited training programme. Their hope is that some of this new community of leaders will then return to mainstream schools so that they can share and cascade their knowledge with the ultimate aim of reducing school exclusion. Our Director of Policy and NAHT Edge Director, James Bowen, meets with Kiran and her colleague Shaun Brown to find out more about the charity’s work and the impact it has.