Racist abuse and sexual misconduct was a factor in dozens of school exclusions across Dorset last year, figures reveal.

Department for Education data showed that ‘racist abuse’ was listed as a reason behind 40 exclusions; 39 temporary and 1 permanent.

‘Sexual misconduct’ was given as a reason for 12 exclusions (all temporary), ‘drugs / alcohol’ as a reason for 80 exclusions (78 temporary, 2 permanent), and ‘wilful and repeated transgression of protective measures’ being behind 24 temporary exclusions.

In total there were 2,326 temporary exclusions from Dorset schools in the 2020-21 academic year with 31 permanent exclusions; an increase on the 2,198 temporary exclusions in 2019-20 but a slight decrease on the 35 permanent exclusions recorded.

The most common reasons behind exclusion were persistently disruptive behaviour (38.5%), physical abuse (23.6%), and verbal abuse (22.7%).

Last year was the first that schools were able to give more than one reason for the suspension of a student.

Nationally there were 352,454 temporary exclusions in 2020-21 (a 13.4% increase on 2019-20) and 3,928 permanent exclusions (a 22.3% decrease).

A Dorset Council spokesperson said: “Dorset’s schools and academies have been working hard to support our children and young people, and we work with them to ensure they have the support they need to ensure our pupils are learning and thriving.

“A key achievement in the 2021/22 academic year was that by working in partnership, schools and academies, Dorset saw a significant improvement in permanent exclusions.

“This put permanent exclusions at the lowest levels we have seen since 2015/16 and we have had no permanent exclusions in primary age children.

“Suspensions in the 2021/22 academic year have reduced by 4% on the previous year (2020/21) owing to the hard work schools and academies across Dorset have been doing.

“As a Council, one of our key priorities for education is to ensure our schools are more inclusive and this remains a pillar of the work of the Dorset Education Board.”

Figures for the 2021-22 academic year aren’t yet available to the public and are expected to be published by the Department for Education in July 2023.