Second Chance Centres
The Scottish Conservatives believe that good discipline is needed for a school to function. Pupils should be removed from the schools where they are causing mayhem and should not be allowed to return to mainstream education until they can show that they can behave properly. We therefore propose piloting second chance centres, similar to the second chance schools which have been a huge success in many parts of Europe and the US. These units are entirely separate from the normal school and away from the environment that has provoked the trouble.
Context
School discipline continues to be an issue that rightly gains the attention of the press, politicians, and parents alike. Many teachers and the professional bodies which represent them complain that problems to do with school discipline and the inability of staff to do much about it, is one of the biggest problems in our schools today.
Despite most people recognising that good discipline is central to the good management of any school, indiscipline in our schools remains too common a problem, especially when it comes to persistent troublemakers. The number of exclusions from schools peaked in 2006/07 at 44,794. A staggering 98% of all exclusions receive no provision or other assistance, which means that some pupils see exclusions as a favourable alternative to classroom activity. Furthermore, over one million days are lost to truancy a year. Many local authorities attempt to deal with this by setting exclusion targets which we do not see as an acceptable solution.
The Scottish Conservatives believe that a much stronger line is needed on discipline than there is at present. We believe that it is unacceptable for persistently disruptive pupils to remain in the classroom, disrupting education for the majority of pupils and teachers. These pupils should not be allowed to return to mainstream education until they can behave properly. There has to be a stop to situations where ‘exclusion’ means missing school time with nothing constructive in its place. Head teachers need to be able to have the power to make referrals to the second chance centres, but in the first instance it might be local authority officers who take responsibility for this.
While the Scottish Conservatives recognise that many voluntary sector organisations do a great job of dealing with difficult pupils, the Scottish Conservatives would propose a pilot on a new policy in Scotland of, ‘Second Chance Centres’ to help schools deal with the most persistent offenders. This may be a more radical solution to tackling the problem but is one that can hopefully work well. The policy would involve specially trained staff in dedicated centres designed to tackle the issues surrounding disruptive pupils. They would be placed outside mainstream schooling and the idea behind this is that it would be beneficial for all pupils. Schools will not feel under pressure to provide facilities on their existing grounds. Placing the centres off campus would help distinguish them from the everyday work of other schools and as such could also act as a further deterrent as pupils will be placed away from a familiar environment. After consultation, it is also our view that there is a possibility of using the skills of retired policemen to assist with the staffing of these centres.