Kids ‘at risk’ of school exclusion and youth justice involvement? Or neurodivergent children and families in need of trauma-informed support?

Day, Anne-Marie ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8525-770X (2025) Kids ‘at risk’ of school exclusion and youth justice involvement? Or neurodivergent children and families in need of trauma-informed support? Emotional and Behavioural Difficulties. pp. 1-16. ISSN 1363-2752

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Abstract

Neurodivergent children and children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) are significantly over-represented in the school-excluded and youth justice populations both internationally and in the UK. Given the wealth of knowledge established about the ‘school to prison pipeline’, it is crucial that we understand why this over-representation exists, and what support can be offered to children and their families to reduce school exclusions and potential youth justice involvement. This paper considers data from the Oakshire Family Support Project, that sought to work with children aged 7–11 identified as ‘at risk’ of school exclusion and potential youth justice involvement. It found that the majority of children were neurodivergent and that family support, containing many features of trauma-informed practice, both acted as a lifeline to children and their families, and significantly reduced school exclusions, improved school attendance, and reduced the likelihood of youth justice involvement in later life. The paper concludes by arguing that trauma-informed family support offers an alternative blueprint to reduce school exclusions and youth justice involvement for neurodivergent children and their families.