Permanent exclusions from school halve in two years
The number of permanent exclusions has halved in two years, Department for Education figures reveal.
There were 3,900 permanent exclusions in the 2020/21 academic year, more than 1,000 permanent exclusions lower than in the 2019/20 academic year when there were 5,100 permanent exclusions and around half the number of permanent exclusions in the last full [...]
Mental health services for young people ‘buckling under pressure’
The system for supporting children and young people with mental health problems is “buckling under pressure”, the former children’s commissioner has warned.
Anne Longfield, chair Commission for Young LivesThe Commission on Young Lives, chaired by Anne Longfield, alongside the leading thinktank Centre for Mental Health, and the Children and Young People's Mental Health Coalition has [...]
Cost- of-living crisis acts as barrier to abuse victims leaving perpetrators
The cost-of-living crisis is creating further barriers for victims of domestic abuse to leave the perpetrators, the charity Refuge has warned.
73% of Refuge’s frontline staff said that the cost-of-living crisis is increasing barriers to leaving a perpetrator, and some frontline workers report that women have returned to perpetrators as they cannot afford to live [...]
Online grooming rises by 80% in four years
Online grooming crimes recorded by the police continue to rise and have jumped by more than 80% in four years, according to figures obtained by the NSPCC.
Record levels of online grooming were reached during the pandemic, and have not subsided and have in fact risen, meaning there may be a long-term increase in risk.
Sir [...]
Domestic abuse victims will no longer be cross-examined by alleged perpetrators
Victims of domestic abuse will no longer have to face the trauma of being cross-examined by their alleged attackers in family and civil courts, the government has announced.
Instead, a court-appointed legal professional will carry out the cross-examination to ensure that justice continues to be done fairly for both sides. Hundreds of lawyers have already [...]
Home-based learning limits peer support and development opportunities for social workers
Home-based working, introduced in response to the pandemic and which still operates in many areas, limits peer support and learning and development opportunities for social workers and other staff, a report by Ofsted has found.
The inspectorate outlines how face-to-face interaction with colleagues is particularly important for newly qualified social workers, who have mainly operated [...]
