Abstract

A Microsoft Office survey was circulated to Special Educational Needs Coordinators (SENCOs) and teachers in 97 junior and primary schools in the City of Sunderland. The study sought to investigate the characteristics of children in years 5/6 at moderate, high and very high risk of exclusion as reported by SENCOs and to determine their characteristics and educational support needs. Fifteen of the schools completed the survey (15%), the findings of which suggest that a scale helps identify the children at risk of exclusion from school. The SENCOs principally found that the criteria from the measure were characteristics that applied to their at-risk pupils. However, this was different for the school attendance criteria, a characteristic SENCOs overwhelmingly found non-applicable to their pupils. The SENCOs shared concerns regarding the children’s transition to secondary school, including their ability to build relationships with teachers and other children, coping with the transition from a primary to secondary school environment, meeting behaviour expectations, adhering to rules and complying with sanctions, and dealing with the heightened stress brought by curriculum demands and teaching methods due to learning difficulties and disabilities.