‘At Redthread, we see youth violence as a health issue which, therefore, should be treated in the same way as a disease. This must start with an analysis of the causes, before going on to diagnose the problem, look at what works to treat the symptoms and develop solutions. Permanently excluding young people from school is not the root cause of why some become involved in violence, however their behaviour in school should be viewed as a symptom of the challenges they face and the vulnerabilities they experience. ‘
The school that embeds inclusion
'Working in a pupil-referral unit changed my career'
The challenges of working in a pupil-referral unit show us how to support pupils in mainstream schools, says Shaun Brown.
Stepping into the last-chance saloon
‘Students in pupil-referral units are more than twice as likely to be taught by an unqualified teacher. Yet, as Will Moss has found, moving from a mainstream setting to play a part in reviving the lives of excluded children can be a deeply rewarding – and professionally creative – challenge ‘