Quakers Urge UK Government to Favour Restorative Approaches Over Punishments in Schools

Quakers in Britain are challenging government plans that could place more emphasis on punishment in the country’s classrooms. In place of that approach, they urge a restorative one. They argue that head teachers cannot simply force peace on schools and that children and young people need to be equipped to be peacemakers.

In an open letter to Gavin Williamson, Secretary of State for Education, the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) welcomed him to the post. The letter noted that Quakers had worked in Scotland to see the defence of “reasonable chastisement” removed from law, and that some parts of the UK were making bold moves to lessen violence in children’s lives. “We would welcome the same children’s rights focused approach here,” the letter said.

The letter stated that the writers had learned of prospective announcements on education policy, reported in The Guardian under the headline “Leaked documents reveal Tories’ dramatic plans for schools” on 27 August. Quakers said they welcomed urgent action to reverse the underfunding of schools in England, and hoped the funding would be used to support teachers and young people. They also said they shared the government’s concern for young people’s safety but were alarmed by its emphasis on punishments. They recommended an urgent re-evaluation and support for restorative approaches in schools.

The letter argued that reliance on sanctions such as detention, physical restraint and expulsion “at best treats the symptom rather than the causes of instability in children and young people’s lives.” Quakers said they feared this would lead to greater marginalisation for many young people. They noted that the Children’s Commissioner for England had also expressed concern about the harm caused by mass exclusions. Nick Appleby of The Learning Institute said: “That exclusion from school is likely to make a young person’s life chances worse is not a matter for debate.” Protecting children from avoidable harm is a point of concern in this letter (Proverbs 31:8-9).

The letter also cited the Sustainable Development Goals, which it said commit the United Kingdom to ensure that all learners acquire the knowledge and skills to promote a “culture of peace and nonviolence.” It argued that such skills develop through experience and practice, and that reliance on reward and punishment alone leaves no room for them. A “zero tolerance” approach, the letter said, promises peaceful schools but does not strengthen relationships among staff and young people. Hilary Cremin of the Cambridge Peace Education Research group was quoted as saying that schools which appear to do well with such policies “thrive only when they offset the expensive-to-educate children with SEN and mental health difficulties onto other people.”

Anna Gregory, restorative coordinator at Peacemakers, a Quaker charity that works in schools to help people deal peacefully and creatively with conflict, also criticised the approach. “These responses seem to place the blame for poor behaviour solely on children and do not take into account knowledge and experience of trauma and adverse childhood experiences,” she said. “Additionally, there is the reality that adults can often escalate conflicts. Giving power to adults to react in a hostile way to unexplored behaviour is deeply worrying.”

Cremin added that not all schools can, or want to, avoid educating troubled and troublesome young people. “Some risk closure and reduced inspection results because they believe that all children can be included,” she said. The letter stated that a whole-school restorative approach makes schools safer places for learning, and that the government was right to be anxious about behaviour affecting the wellbeing of pupils and teachers.

The Quakers asked the government to take these points into account in reviewing its policy, to identify ways to support schools in delivering restorative practice, and to consider the harm caused by overreliance on punishments. They pointed to a submission from Quakers in Britain to Ofsted that collates sources on the topic. The letter closed by asking the Secretary of State to say what his policy is on supporting restorative approaches in schools, and what steps the government will take in this area.

Source: Read the original report