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UNANIMOUSLY RESOLVED: That the
amendments to the joint motion were CARRIED as
follows:
 
Renewing our
Commitment to Further Strengthen School Inclusion and Reduce
Exclusions, Preventing Harmful Outcomes
 
Hackney Council
notes:
1. 
Strengthening school inclusion is a priority, working in
partnership with the voluntary sector, local and central
government.
 
2. 
The 2025 inclusion Parliamentary Roundtable co-chaired by the
Rt Hon Diane Abbott and Deputy Mayor
Cllr Anntoinette Bramble 2025.
 
3. 
The adoption of the Hackney Education No Need to Exclude guidance
(2015), Hackney’s commitment as a signatory to the London
Inclusion Charter, and Council motion
Mental Health: A Human Right for All adopted in September 2023.
 
4. 
Hackney has the highest rates of permanent exclusions in London and
second highest suspensions. Suspensions rose from 2,775 to 3,207
and permanent exclusions increased from 33 to 52 between 2022/2023
and 2023/2024.
 
5. 
Exclusions and disciplinary sanctions disproportionately affect
Black and Global Majority pupils and intersect with unmet SEND,
safeguarding vulnerability, and involvement with social care and
Youth Justice service
 
6. 
Recent safeguarding practice reviews, including the Mossbourne review, highlight harm caused by
punitive disciplinary cultures, particularly for pupils with SEND
and those from Black and Global Majority backgrounds.
 
The Council
recognises:
7. 
The Council’s statutory duties under Section 19 of the
Education Act 1996 to secure suitable education for children who
are out of school, aligned to their age, ability, aptitude, SEND
and best interests, and its obligations under the Public Sector
Equality Duty (Section 149 Equality Act 2010) to prevent
foreseeable harm and discrimination.
 
Hackney Council
resolves to:
8. 
Continue working with headteachers,
governing bodies and academy trusts across Hackney, including
through existing service-level agreements and partnership
arrangements, to promote and ensure compliance with current
DfE guidance, safeguarding
requirements, SEND duties and anti-racist principles, equalities
legislation including (the Public Sector Equality Duty) ensuring
exclusion is always a genuine last resort.
 
9. 
Implement our Education Strategy, shaped by parents, carers,
schools, and local voluntary sector through; including the work on
Hackney Education Additional Learning Service to strengthen a
trauma-informed inclusion approach.
 
10.Ensure no pupil with identified or suspected
SEND is excluded unless statutory SEND duties, reasonable
adjustments and early intervention have been demonstrably met and
evidenced.
 
11.Continue to implement the recommendations of
the 2021 Children and Young People’s Scrutiny review and any
further recommendations arising from scrutiny of school behaviour
and exclusion practice.
 
12.Continue to promote trauma-informed, culturally
competent and anti-racist practice across Hackney schools, informed
by local data on disproportionality in exclusions and disciplinary
sanctions.
 
13.Continue to strengthen peer support and
advocacy for parents and carers. Enhance SEND independent advice
and guidance wrap-around, family-friendly support to prevent
exclusions, including accessible communication on the Local Offer
and early sign posting to access to independent legal advocacy
where exclusion or managed move is being considered.
 
14.Through our School Improvement Partners we will develop our approach to discussing
and monitoring managed moves within schools.
 
15.Improve transparency by publishing validated
exclusions data to identify trends. Hackney Education will monitor
any potential off rolling and escalate accordingly.
 
16.Develop our Hackney Alternative Education
Learning Service inclusion panel with oversight from the Director
of Education to review potential or actual exclusions promptly and
prevent exclusion wherever possible.
 
17.Continue to advocate nationally for a fully
inclusive education system