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'Shocking' rise in school suspensions for racist and homophobic abuse
Key takeaways
- Joanna Morris BBC Shared Data Unit Kirsten Coutts Kirsten Coutts, pictured here with her son Sam, believes parents have a responsibility to ensure their children do not target others.
- Between 2020-21 and 2024-25, there were more than 55,000 suspensions linked to racist abuse at English schools.
- Department for Education data documenting reasons for suspensions also shows schools logged homophobic or transphobic abuse more than 13,000 times and disablist abuse about 1,600 times in the same period.
Why this matters: a developing story that could shape the day's news cycle.
Joanna Morris BBC Shared Data Unit Kirsten Coutts Kirsten Coutts, pictured here with her son Sam, believes parents have a responsibility to ensure their children do not target others. A rise in school suspensions over racist, homophobic and disablist abuse is linked to an erosion in anti-bullying support and wider societal issues, education specialists say.
Between 2020-21 and 2024-25, there were more than 55,000 suspensions linked to racist abuse at English schools.
Department for Education data documenting reasons for suspensions also shows schools logged homophobic or transphobic abuse more than 13,000 times and disablist abuse about 1,600 times in the same period.
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