An influential group of youth organisations and educators are backing a call to UK government led by Sir Lewis Hamilton’s Mission 44 Foundation for “urgent, coordinated action to build an inclusive education system where every child feels safe, heard and able to thrive”.

It follows research from Mission 44 – the foundation launched by the Formula One star to support young people to thrive in education and beyond – which reveals a stark disconnect between students’ needs and their everyday experience of school.

VULNERABLE

The research comes amid growing concern about the record-high and rising rates of suspensions and exclusions in England’s schools, and in an increasingly challenging climate for students, parents and teachers. The group of organisations says these new findings expose an educational system where too many pupils feel they don’t belong in school, with more vulnerable students most likely to be left behind.

A joint statement from the group on the Mission 44 website read: “We are deeply concerned by the growing crisis facing our schools – and the young people at the heart of them.”

According to the research, almost one in five (17%) young people report feeling unsafe or unwelcome at school or college. This is particularly true for more vulnerable students; including those with Special Educational Needs (SEN) (28%), disabled students (30%) and students from lower socio-economic backgrounds (21%) – who are more likely to feel this way than those from more affluent backgrounds (15%).

Furthermore, one in five (22%) young people say their experience at school or college has negatively affected their mental health and wellbeing, rising to 26% among girls and an alarming 36% among SEN pupils and 38% of disabled students. Two in 5 (41%) feel that when they raise concerns about their wellbeing, they are ignored by their institutions – rising to 63% for those with SEN and 45% for those from lower socio-economic backgrounds.

EXPERIENCE

Through its Nothing Happens in Isolation campaign, Mission 44 has highlighted research, insights, and lived experience to show how unmet needs, poor mental health support, discrimination, and poverty can drive school absence, suspension and exclusion.

The statement continued: “It’s clear that these challenges don’t exist in isolation – and they can’t be solved in isolation either.

“Whilst we recognise that the government has made efforts over the last year to improve inclusion within the education system, it is clear that we need to go further and faster. That’s why we’re united in calling for urgent, co-ordinated action to build an inclusive education system where every child feels safe, heard and able to thrive.”

Signatories are calling for government and sector-wide action to implement four measures, including a national framework for inclusion, and targeted funding for an inclusive workforce.

Read the joint statement at mission44.org

Pic credits: Mission 44.

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