Exploring the Issue of Off-Rolling

Exploring the issue of off-rolling

On behalf of Ofsted

May 9, 2019

Summary

Summary

1. There’s mixed understanding of what off-rolling is, but many are aware that it’s happening and that it’s on the increase.

2. Many education professionals perceive there to be an overlap between off-rolling and other (sometimes legitimate) practices.

3. Off-rolling is triggered by league table position - both Slt and classroom teachers feel the pressure of needing to maintain high performance and good Ofsted ratings.

4. Vulnerable students, with SEN or other needs, are more likely to be affected.

5. While schools may say pupils are off-rolled due to behaviour, teachers personally believe academic achievement is more important in the decision making.

6. It’s an informal process, during which schools collect data on behaviour and correspondence with the parents.

7. Parents are pressured to accept off-rolling and many teachers think more support is needed for them, especially for those with the least understanding of their children’s rights and/or Eal needs.

8. A minority would like to see more support for schools around how to deal with low attendance/SEN pupils when all other possible solutions have been exhausted.

Teachers who’ve experienced off-rolling are more likely to be…

More Likely To Be Slt

More Likely To Be Male

54% (60%) 46% (37%)

64% (74%)

36% (26%)

Slt Teacher

More Likely To Be Teaching Secondary

More Likely To Be In An Academy

61% (43%) 48% (42%) 38% (44%)

More Likely To Be Teaching In A Large School (1,201+ Pupils)

2% (2%) 8% (10%) 3% (3%)

29% (17%)

More Likely To Be ‘Inadequate/Special Measures’

Academy Grammar Independent/

Other Local authority maintained private 5% (3%) Significantly higher than total sample Significantly lower than total sample Total surveyed population percentage shown in brackets

Teachers who’ve experienced off-rolling were more likely than teachers overall to say…

It Happens A Lot/A Fair

Behaviour Is The Named Reason

Amount

24% (14%) 64% (30%)

It Happens In Autumn Term

22% (26%)

(SEP-DEC)

But They Think Academic Achievement Is A

21% (13%)

Factor

Happens a lot/ a Doesn't happen very fair amount much/ at all 24% (14%) Formal 22% Don't know

They Support Schools Being Able To

30%

OFF-ROLL

It’S An Informal

24% (14%)

Process

It’S Understandable If Schools Cannot Address Underlying Problems (E.G. SEN)

44% (36%) Informal 48%

Schools Pressure Parents To Accept Their

And Pupils Do Not Continue In Mainstream

Children Being OFF-ROLLED

Education

62% (47%) 17% (15%) Significantly higher than total sample Significantly lower than total sample Total surveyed population percentage shown in brackets, if available

Awareness and knowledge of off-rolling

Two thirds of teachers correctly identified ‘off-rolling’, and a quarter have seen it happen in their schools

Q4. Which of the following do you think describes ‘off-rolling’? Q5. Which of the following statements best applies to you?

51%

68%

Only 54% selected this without any other definition SLTs are more likely to know the correct definition (73%)

24% have experienced off-rolling

23%

15%

17% 14% 14% 17%

8%

1%

I know of off- A pupil being taken off the rolling happening in I know off- A pupil being taken off the school roll due to a prolonged, A pupil being withdrawn from a school to enrol them in another I have been involved in off- A pupil being withdrawn from

I had not heard

I have heard of rolling has happened in my current school, school roll in order to try and of off-rolling before taking off-rolling, but never known of previous schools I've worked in, but not my current rolling pupils in a school to home-school Don’t know manipulate reported exam my current this survey it happening but I've never been involved

unauthorised,

school

school them

results/league

absence

school

tables

Some ambiguities exist in teachers’ understanding of which practices are technically ‘off-rolling’

• Most feel confident in agreeing that off-rolling is done to ‘fix statistics’ for the benefit of the school.

“To me it’s something where schools are trying to game the system, probably because of Ofsted and

• Exam results/league table performance is top of mind and many readily identify off-rolling as a way to manipulate these figures.

Governor pressures… After GCSEs all data is reported, if you know a certain student will get poor

grades and not achieve their potential, there could be a temptation to off-roll them so they don’t bring

• However, confusion exists over other practices that teachers are aware of. A number feel that the lines between (sometimes) legitimate practices of removing a pupil from the school and off-rolling can be blurred.

the schools’ results down… Morally I don’t agree with it but I can see why schools do it…” Deputy Head, secondary grammar school

• Absence records were spontaneously raised during the telephone interviews. A few speak of temporarily removing pupil’s from the school roll to improve absence data during Ofsted inspections. • Schools in receipt of students are sometimes suspicious about a cohort of pupils when the school transfer happens within key timeframes in the academic year and the pupils’ school reports indicate that they should have been excluded. • One or two question situations where a pupil had left the school for home schooling, believing that the senior leadership team (Slt) had been quick to accept the decision and not necessarily acting in the best interests of the pupil.

“I would understand the term to generally mean something that is done temporarily by schools to

hide poor attendance if there is a need due to Ofsted inspection, and such like that. It's primarily

taking students off-roll for a short period of time and putting them back on roll after the outside

interest has lessened.” Teacher (with attendance responsibilities),

secondary grammar school

Knowledge of off-rolling is limited among classroom teachers; media is important in building knowledge

• Off-rolling is not openly discussed in schools – the vast majority agree that it’s reprehensible and, due to the taboo surrounding off-rolling, it’s often done ‘behind the scenes’. This leaves it open to speculation among non-decision makers.

“We’re not consulted before, I've

• Classroom teachers are informed when a pupil leaves and often draw their own conclusions that the pupil has been off-rolled, although this is never communicated by the Slt. • Teachers are likely to believe that the pupil has been off-rolled if they have been asked to provide evidence on the pupil’s behaviour and they are known to be a low academic achiever, or if a pupil leaves abruptly.

never been involved in making those decisions… children just

disappear.” Teacher, secondary academy

• Those who are aware of off-rolling but have not had experience of it have learnt about it through:

• General media coverage – Most have learnt about it through the news/reading articles on sites such as the Bbc • Word of mouth/professional networks – Some spoke about learning about off- rolling through their professional networks (e.g. discussing it with other heads; watercooler conversation at training sessions) • Industry news – A few Slt note that there is increased coverage on off-rolling by organisations such as Ofsted.

“I was reading about attendance and exam results, and there was an

article on 'off-rolling, is it acceptable' on the Bbc.” Assistant Head, primary academy

Teachers who’ve seen off-rolling think it happens a fair amount in their local area and many think it’s on the rise

Q7. How often do you think off-rolling happens in schools within your local authority area? Q8. And do you think off-rolling happens more or less than it did five years ago, or is it about the same?

66% said it happens more

26%

Happens a lot more

64% said a lot/ a fair amount

16%

Happens a lot

40%

Happens more

48%

Happens a fair amount

18%

About the same Across all teachers, SLTs are more likely than teachers to

20%

Across all teachers, 30% think it Doesn't happen very much happens a lot/a fair amount think it’s on the rise

2%

Happens less

(61% vs 45%)

2%

Doesn't happen at all

2%

Happens a lot less

14%

Don't know

12%

Don't know “I think it's more common than people think it is… it's gone up dramatically in the “…at my previous schools that was

commonplace.” Slt, secondary academy

last 10 years…” Assistant Headteacher, primary academy

Teachers think that pupils with behavioural issues are most at risk of being off-rolled

Q9. What type of pupils do you think off-rolling is more likely to happen to?

82%

Pupils with behavioural issues

87%

61%

Pupils with low academic attainment

70%

In the qualitative interviews, a number acknowledge that an overlap exists between students that exhibit behavioural issues, SEN students and those with low academic attainment.

47%

Pupils with special educational needs (SEN)

53%

46%

Pupils with a disruptive home life

50%

Pupils whose parents don't understand the education system/their

37%

Overall, secondary teachers are

42%

legal rights more likely than primary teachers to flag parents’ low

36%

Pupils from economically deprived areas

42%

education level or not understanding their rights

36%

Pupils whose parents have low education levels

41%

(54% vs 46%)

26%

Male pupils

31%

15%

Pupils with English as a second language

15%

“Students with challenging behaviours and obviously

5%

Pupils with a summer birthday weaker students, because of the pressures the school perceives itself to be under, they are a target

6%

1%

Pupils with older siblings

2%

and are more likely to be off-rolled. Within that you have more SEN students. ‘Non-adult’ behaviours of

1%

Female pupils

1%

SEN, such as lashing out, aren’t accepted well by All teachers

0%

senior leaders…” Department Head, secondary academy

Pupils with younger siblings

0%

Teachers who experienced off-rolling

1%

Other

0%

Half of teachers said the main reason for schools to off-roll a pupil is to manipulate league tables

Q12. What do you think is the main reason for schools off-rolling pupils?

51%

To achieve/maintain a high position on

• During the interviews, league tables results were highlighted as the key driver for off-rolling pupils. A school’s performance in the league tables dictates how it’s perceived among key stakeholders – current pupils and parents, potential pupils and parents, Governors, future teaching staff and Government.

a league table

48%

15%

To avoid adding to the schools' exclusion record

22%

15%

To achieve/maintain a high Ofsted

• Off-rolling students is seen as a better alternative to exclusions as the school’s exclusion record is taken into account by Ofsted.

grade

14%

7%

To maintain the school's reputation (e.g.

among prospective parents)

7%

“[Off-rolling happens] due to the external pressures

2%

the school is under, the emphasis on data… off- rolling is a better solution to exclusions… it can be

To avoid losing funding

2%

All teachers done without having exclusion on the record, and without months of additional paperwork.”

2%

Headteacher, primary LA school

Teachers who experienced off-rolling

Other

3%

In actual examples, while behavioural issues are the top reasons given for a pupil being off-rolled, league tables come second when asking for teachers’ personal views

Q16. What were the reasons the school gave (e.g. to the pupil, their parents) for off-rolling this pupil? Q17. And what do you personally think were the reasons to off-roll these pupils?

The pupil had persistent behavioural issues The pupil had persistent behavioural issues (e.g. being disruptive/aggressive)

57%

68%

(e.g. being disruptive/aggressive) To achieve/maintain a high position on a

41%

league table The pupil had poor attendance/prolonged absence

31%

To avoid adding to the school's exclusion

33%

record Another school would have better resources/support (e.g. for special

27%

To maintain the school's reputation (e.g.

educational needs)

24%

among prospective parents) The pupil had lower academic attainment than the school wanted

21%

The pupil had poor attendance/prolonged

24%

absence There was a one-off event (e.g. the

20%

To achieve/maintain a high Ofsted score

18%

pupil attacked staff, vandalised property) Another school would have better resources/support (e.g. for special

13%

The pupil would be better off being

13%

educational needs) educated at home There was a one-off event (e.g. the pupil

8%

attacked staff, vandalised property)

3%

Other

3%

Other

Education professionals agree it’s easier to justify off-rolling when there are behavioural concerns

• During the off-rolling process, the majority spoke about collecting evidence on and discussing behavioural concerns with parents.

“I think it's common, yeah. Obviously it's dressed up as other issues because schools would get into

a huge amount of trouble if they knew we were doing it, but I think it's common…The school would

• However, education professionals agree that behavioural issues often go hand in hand with low academic attainment. • Some feel that behavioural issues are often ‘dressed up’ as a way to justify the pupils’ removal. • One teacher from a SEN school in receipt of pupils off- rolled for behaviour felt that behavioural reports had sometimes been over exaggerated and did not reflect their experience of the child. • Another teacher from a mainstream secondary school stated that pupils who had exhibited the same level of behaviour (sometimes worse) than pupils who had been off- rolled but achieved academically had remained at the school.

never say you're below target so we are going to find you another school…” Department Head, Secondary Academy “In terms of [communicating] academic reasons [for off-rolling], this is not so popular as it is

harder to do…” Headteacher, primary LA school

Education professionals perceive struggling schools in disadvantaged areas to be most likely to off-roll

• Most think that off-rolling happens most in secondary schools in deprived areas where it’s more challenging to maintain performance.

“League tables and Ofsted go hand in hand, they are the entire motivations for people doing those things… there

o There is a general consensus that higher achieving schools are better able to ‘take the hit’ of poor results from a few pupils, whereas schools with an overall lower performing cohort will feel the impact of negative data more severely. o Similarly, some felt that small schools had a higher propensity to off-roll because their pupils represent a larger percentage and so have a stronger impact on results.

are more pressures on English and Maths, they are double weighted, if they are below a certain level, or

aren't improving at a certain rate, you can't get an outstanding Ofsted result. That certainly has been a

reason in the past for manipulating the figures… There is the reputation for the school to maintain or improve, if you have an outstanding Ofsted result, you'll be over subscribed and have a full year 7; you'll have a good calibre of students…

• At the same time, a few mention schools that they think ‘play hard’ and off-roll pupils to maintain high performance and Ofsted rating.

I've worked at failing schools in the past. If you are failing, you end up with some students whose parents

o Education professionals are mindful of the ‘spiral of decline’ caused by poor league table results - as the school becomes less appealing to parents/ambitious students, the academic ability of a cohort declines as does parental engagement, and so it becomes more challenging to lift results back up. o During the telephone interviews, many classroom teachers spoke about feeling pressure from Slt to get results, especially in core subject areas that are recorded in league table statistics.

haven't really thought about where they will go, they aren't motivated, they aren't that bothered and therefore, gradually over the space of a few years you get more and more of those students in, the intake goes down, the numbers go down, the academic attainment goes down, parent involvement goes down…” Department Deputy Head, secondary academy

The process of off-rolling pupils

An Slt is often cited as the initiator of off-rolling, but all roles are involved in the process to a differing extent

Q18. Who made the first suggestion to off-roll this pupil? Q19. Who else was involved in off-rolling this pupil (e.g. collecting evidence, speaking to the pupil/parent)?

38%

25%

The school headteacher The deputy/assistant headteacher

35%

14%

51% said an Slt

58% said an Slt

Other senior-level teacher (e.g. key stage leader, assessment leader)

30%

12%

13%

3%

A teacher Schools with a ‘Good’ Ofsted rating were more likely to say the headteacher was involved

5%

3%

The multi-academy trust (43%)

13%

2%

A school governor

8%

0%

The local authority

8%

The parents N/A

1%

0%

Other

Off-rolling often happens informally and when evidence is collected, it’s rarely academic

Q20. Was the process of off-rolling this pupil formal or informal? Q21. What evidence, if any, was collected?

71%

Evidence of behaviour issues Formal (e.g. a rigid approach that involved collecting data and speaking to external bodies)

22%

Records of contact with parents (e.g.

53%

meetings)

30%

Records of correspondence sent to the

51%

pupil/parents (e.g. letters)

44%

Evidence of support provided Informal (e.g. a less rigid approach with less external involvement) Records of contact/correspondence

40%

with external bodies

33%

Class registers/attendance records

13%

Previous exam scores Don't know

12%

Mock exam scores

48%

7%

Other All teachers who’ve experienced off-rolling (288); All teachers who said a formal approach to off-rolling was used (59)

Case study: the off-rolling process

• Those with experience of off-rolling agree that it occurs before GCSEs; either throughout Years 10/11 before results are collected, or in Year 9 before teaching beds in.

Department Head, secondary academy

1. Behaviour is recorded

2. Slt are involved

3. Parents are communicated with, face-to-face

“Teachers would be vigilant on recording behaviour of that child, an email might be sent out saying

“The Deputy Head or Headteacher

would be involved at that point.

“They make it easy for a parent to

Governors would be involved as well but the issue is that some of the Governors are not educational

do it themselves, so make it clear

please record any incidences regarding student ‘x’… either there would be a major blow out or it would be an accumulation of

that it will be difficult for their

child to stay and make the arrangements for the child to move school… If they have decided

professionals, so they are trusting

the knowledge of the professionals, but the professionals are obviously sometimes self-interested in it…”

smaller points… Students are put

that a parent could be an easy

on booklets, they have three targets and each member of staff

touch or is not well educated themselves then they take the

grades them. To pass the booklet

informal approach…”

they would have to get a certain

mark for the week…”

Parents with low understanding of the education system are most at risk of being pressured

• Throughout the telephone interviews, examples of parents being pressured into off-rolling their child emerged.

“They talk about school records and things, but I don't think they exist anymore. There is a lot of talk of ‘oh it could be on

• Most commonly, schools emphasised how an alternative school with specialist provision for SEN would be more suited to the pupil. While true in many cases, a few felt that this argument was not always accurate and instead used to leverage out a pupil with behavioural issues who also has low academic attainment. • Some spoke of fear-mongering among parents, with management painting a ‘worse case scenario’ for the child’s future if they remained within the school. One mentioned how this tactic could be used to encourage a school transfer in place of an exclusion (which would be included on the schools’ exclusions record).

their record and it could be bought up if they applied for a job’, which is a load of rubbish…” Department Head, secondary academy “I strongly suspect some schools are saying, ‘right the situation is this – your child is underachieving, their behaviour record is bad… you can either fill in this transfer form, or we will go through a permanent exclusion process and they will end up having to attend a PRU school with young criminals.”

Deputy Head, secondary grammar

• Most believe that pupils who had less engaged and/or less informed parents were more likely to be off-rolled by schools.

“Schools sometimes just rail road parents who don't know what their rights are and that's very wrong… At my previous school a few times parents got educational lawyers in and the

• Some spoke about how it was easier to remove a pupil with parents who had less understanding of the education system and their legal rights. Often these parents also had lower education levels and/or were Eal.

school would get very scared at that stage…”

Department Head, secondary academy

Case studies: pressurising parents into their children leaving via legitimate routes

School transfers in place of exclusions SEN scapegoating?

Teacher, primary LA maintained school

• She has a reputation for being able to deal with

challenging behaviour, and so works closely with children displaying problem behaviours.

• There was an occasion where the school was arguing

that a SEN school would be better suited to the needs of a pupil. The parents did not want their child to go to an SEN school and she agreed that the child did not need SEN provision.

• She advised the parents to fight the schools decision –

“I believed that this pupil didn’t need to leave… I have a good relationship with the parents, so I told them that he is entitled to stay in this school and to ‘fight back’… I said to them, ‘this is an off the record conversation if you go to the headteacher and tell them I've said it, I will deny it…”

Assistant Headteacher, secondary free school

• He has experience off off-rolling low achieving pupils

ahead of the GCSE results at a previous school – “Effectively, when you have students that are likely to underachieve and to find a way to get them off the school roll so they do not appear on their results. There are ways of doing that that will get you in trouble but there are also ways of doing it that will not.”

• In his new school, he can identify pupils who have

been transferred but when the school reports come through it’s clear that they should have been excluded.

• He is aware of some schools who will accept students

onto their roll for a fee.

Only a third thought off-rolled pupils went on to other mainstream schools, and only a fifth of those with experience said there was any follow-up

Q10. And what kind of education do you think off-rolled pupils end up in? Q23. Did you or the school follow up with either the parent or the pupil once they had left the school?

3%

45%

Pupil referral units

14%

Mainstream schools (e.g. local

34%

authority schools, academies,…

31%

Home-schooling Yes, I did Yes, the school did

11%

Special schools No, neither

25% 57%

Don't know

4%

Free schools

2%

Independent/private schools

1%

Other “Once they have left, they are not the school’s responsibility. It's only through more informal conversation with pupils, to ask them None (i.e. don't continue their

15%

education) if they still see so and so who used to go

here?” Department Deputy Head, secondary

0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50%

academy

All teachers (1018); All teachers who’ve experienced off-rolling (288)

Support around off-rolling

Most teachers oppose off-rolling, but some think it’s understandable when there are underlying issues at play

Q13. Do you support or oppose schools being able to off-roll pupils? Q14. To what extent, if at all, do you agree or disagree with the following statements?

Schools pressure parents to accept their children

36%

3%

13%

38%

9%

being off-rolled

46% 38%

Schools are too quick to off-roll pupils without

25%

11%

22%

30%

13%

addressing any underlying problems It's understandable for schools to off-roll pupils if Strongly oppose they can't address any underlying problems (e.g.

12%

20%

31%

29%

7%

Tend to oppose low attendance, special educational needs)

38%

Tend to support Strongly support

40%

Parents cannot do much to prevent off-rolling if the

23%

16%

34%

23%

4%

school wants it to happen

2% 5% 12% 19%

Off-rolling is a necessary part of the education

11%

47%

31%

8%

2%

system All Teachers who experienced off-rolling Strongly agree Agree Disagree Strongly disagree Don't know

Teachers particularly wanted more support for parents around off- rolling, but also more support for schools to address the underlying issues linked to off-rolling

Q26. Who, if anyone, do you think needs more support and information around off-rolling?

• Teachers would like parents to be able to access resources that would explain their rights and outline their options in a clear and easy-to-understand way. • Additional support should be provided to Eal parents to help comprehend the materials that they receive. • Teachers would feel reassured if they knew that those pupils/parents leaving the school would have access to on-going support – they do not want the child to ‘fall through the gaps’.

56%

Parents

35%

Teachers

35%

School governors

33%

School headteachers

23%

Local authorities “Sometimes the parents are not aware that by taking their

22%

Deputy/assistant headteachers children out of school it will have a huge impact on their life… They don't know what their rights are. They don't know that they can say, if you don't want my child then it's

22%

Pupils your responsibility to find another school where my child can go… Students with parents who speak another language, I don’t think that they are given enough support Other senior-level teachers (e.g. key

18%

stage leader, assessment leader) to understand letters. I know that they can ask for interpreters, but I don't think that they know that.”

1%

Other

Department Deputy Head, secondary academy

Not applicable – I don't think anyone

10%

needs more support/information All teachers (1018); All teachers who thought more support/ information was needed (775)

But they also thought schools needed more support to address SEN and other behaviours linked to off-rolling

More support for schools to address

'school refusers'/low attendance • During the telephone interviews, some education professionals detailed how they had invested in interventions with pupils with underlying issues but could not see a solution.

68%

More support in schools for pupils with

64%

special educational needs (SEN)

• SEN: One Deputy Headteacher (in a ‘struggling’ primary school) stated that they had hired two members of staff to support a SEN pupil with very complex needs. There had been a delay in getting funding for the pupil through an Educational Healthcare Plan, which meant that the staff were being funding for directly from the school’s already limited budget. • Poor attendance: One fulfilling an attendance role discussed challenges with encouraging school refusers to partake in education. According to the law, the pupil has to be absent for more than 20 days and the school must not know the location of the child. However, because they knew the address of the pupil in question they were unable to take them off their books and so this pupil continued to affect its data.

More information for pupils/parents on

57%

their education rights/responsibilities More support for schools to facilitate

55%

'managed moves' More information for school governors about off-rolling and other alternatives

41%

More information for local authorities

37%

about how to combat off-rolling

3%

Other All teachers who thought more support/information was needed (775)

Appendix

Methodology

• This report presents findings from a study commissioned by Ofsted to understand the extent of off-rolling in English schools.

• There were two stages to the project: 1. Depth telephone interviews with teachers and members of Slt. 2. Representative online survey of teachers from primary and secondary schools across England.

• The objective of the research is to explore the triggers and barriers to off-rolling pupils in English schools, including teacher’s perceptions of off-rolling.

• The findings of this research will be used by Ofsted to understand and illustrate the extent of off-rolling in English schools, enabling them to better address the key issues through policy and other work.

Sample profile

Qualitative

• 14 telephone interviews were conducted with members of Slt and teaching professionals from across England.

• All had direct experience of off-rolling (either through teaching the pupils who have been taken off the schools’ roll or by being involved in decisions around off rolling).

• Professionals fulfilling a range of roles, from a range of school types, were included in the interviews:

11 interviews were completed with teaching professionals from secondary schools 3 interviews were completed with teaching professionals from primary schools

Range of roles:

Range of school type:

1 x Headteacher 4 x Deputy/Assistant Headteachers 2 x Head of Department 1 x Head of Year 1 x Head of Key Stage 5 x Teachers

3 x LA maintained schools 1 x SEN school 5 x Academies 1 x Free school 2 x Grammar schools 2 x Independent schools

Sample profile

Quantitative

• 1,018 teaching professionals from primary and secondary schools across England took part in an online survey.

• The fieldwork took place between 21 February and 7 March 2019.

• The sample was weighted to be representative of the teaching population of England by age, gender, region, phase and school type.

Exploring the issue of off-rolling

Jane Rowe (Senior Research Executive, Quantitative): Jane.Rowe@YouGov.com

Ian Neale (Research Director, Quantitative): Ian.Neale@YouGov.com

Lorien Perryfrost (Research Manager, Qualitative): Lorien.Perryfrost@YouGov.com

May 9, 2019