ENGLAND: BLACK CARIBBEAN GIRLS ‘TWICE AS LIKELY TO BE EXCLUDED FROM SCHOOLS AS WHITE GIRLS’

Thu 23 September 2021:

According to a new study, black and minority ethnic girls in England are more than twice as likely as white girls to be excluded from school. A number of worrisome data reveal that the number of girls who are unable to attend school is increasing at a significantly faster rate than boys.

Agenda, a coalition of more than 50 charities fighting for the most marginalized women and children, uncovered data through a freedom of information request to the Department for Education.

During the academic year 2019-20, black Caribbean girls were permanently excluded from school at a rate twice that of white British girls. During this time, girls from Gypsy, Roma, and Traveller communities were four times more likely than white British girls to be permanently excluded.

The report includes firsthand accounts of how unaddressed sexual harassment and abuse, poor mental health, and racism led to girls and young women being barred from education.

Negative perceptions about black girls and young women, as well as those from different ethnic backgrounds, are said to play a key part in their marginalization, according to the survey.

A Department for Education spokesperson was quoted by The Guardian as saying, “We back headteachers to suspend or permanently exclude pupils where this helps maintain calm classrooms that bring out the best in every child, but this should only be used as a last resort. We expect staff to consider any underlying causes of poor behaviour before making this decision”.

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