Abstract

Children move schools or enter alternative provision without an official exclusion through a process known generically as a managed move (Hutchinson and Crenna-Jennings, 2019). Managed moves have been defined in previous Government guidance as a process that enables a child to have a fresh start in a new school; when their current school place is no longer deemed to be viable due to the child’s behaviour (DCSF, 2008). and/or a breakdown in relationships with teachers (Muir, 2013; Craig, 2015; Bagley and Hallam, 2016).

This policy brief shares the findings from freedom of information (FOI) requests that were sent to 149 Local Authorities (LAs) in England. The questions asked were:

Does the LA record data on managed moves?

How many children have had one or more moves in the last two years?

How many of the managed moves in the last two years were successful?

What was the reason recorded for a placement failing?