Over 200 pupils suspended from school in 3 weeks amid crackdown

A Catholic school in Merseyside has suspended more than 200 children in just three weeks after launching a dramatic clampdown on poor behaviour. 

St Edmund Arrowsmith Catholic Academy in Whiston, near Liverpool, has brought in a swathe of tough disciplinary policies as part of a drive to improve standards resulting in mass suspensions and isolations for offences ranging from refusing to hand over mobile phones to wearing make-up and nail varnish.

The controversial measures are part of the school’s plan to move beyond its current Ofsted rating of ‘requires improvement’.

But the sharp spike in punishments has triggered uproar among some parents, who have blasted the crackdown as ‘extreme’ and claimed it is damaging pupils’ mental health.

One father, who asked not to be named, said: ‘I am finding the reasonings for the punishments to be minor and, in my opinion, not befitting of a day in isolation and/or suspension.’

He added: ‘In my opinion the school is not tackling the root cause and are not considering reasons for children or their behaviours on individual merit… it appears to be a new blanket policy and dishing out punishments.’

The dad warned the new system was leaving children ‘anxious and worried about going to school,’ adding: ‘Right now there are mass isolations, mass suspensions and mass numbers of pupils missing valuable time in the classroom, therefore affecting their learning.’

It’s understood that the school issued 99 suspensions in the first week of the new policy alone, followed by 67 in the second week and 36 in the third – a total of 202 in just 21 days.

While the school has welcomed the downward trend as a sign pupils are beginning to respond, parents say the pace and scale of the clampdown is wreaking havoc on family life.

Another parent, Sammy Rhead, said: ‘They suspend for refusing to hand over bracelets, for refusing to hand over phones, having lashes on or makeup.’

Mother-of-two, Lexi Sharp revealed: ‘My daughter is getting suspended every day because I refuse to go to a meeting over nail varnish. That happened a week ago.’

She added: ‘I’ve worked with the school, but enough is enough. I even get detention messages for her while she’s suspended. They told my daughter, ‘when your mum does come in for a meeting, you will be in isolation’.’

Debate has erupted on local Facebook groups, with some parents accusing the school of running it like an ‘army camp’.

One parent said: ‘They actually don’t let the children breathe. The phone calls I get are for silly things. They’re not in the army. They have their own characters. Unless their behaviour is very disturbing, teachers should be able to deal with it.’

But others supported the hardline approach, with one commenting: ‘It’s about time the schools clamped down. Some kids run riot.’

The school, which is part of the Pope Francis Catholic Multi-Academy Trust, has seen major leadership changes in recent years. 

Headteacher Lee Peachey and deputy head Anna Kenny mysteriously disappeared from their roles last year with no explanation ever given and both remain off-duty, though still listed on the school’s website.

In their place, acting headteacher Clare McKenna has been leading the latest reforms in collaboration with the Education Exchange – a national education network that advises on behaviour management.

Ms McKenna defended the policy shift, insisting it was necessary to ‘raise the bar’ and instil a new culture of respect.

She said: ‘Since our recent Ofsted inspection… we have achieved a great deal, and progress has been made.’

She added: ‘We spent a great deal of time looking at how best we could overcome [hurdles], and in response we have… developed some additional targeted approaches. This has resulted in us raising the bar in terms of what we expect of all our pupils.’

Despite the backlash, she insisted most pupils had responded positively: ‘The school is even calmer and more focused – and the feedback we are getting from students is hugely positive.’

Acknowledging the spike in suspensions, she said: ‘There has been a significant drop (of about two-thirds) in things like short-term exclusions. We expect this trajectory to continue.’

The school is also trying to recognise pupils meeting expectations: ‘It is not just about sanctions,’ said Ms McKenna. ‘We are doing more to celebrate those students who are working hard and thriving.’

She concluded: ‘Ultimately, we all want the very best for our brilliant pupils. Behaviour is improving, children are happier and learning is more focused.’