A RECORD number of children have been suspended from school for racist behaviour, according to alarming new figures.

Last year over 15,000 children were suspended from school for racist behaviour last year.

According to a report by The Mirror, suspensions for racism increased from 7,403 in 2021 to 15,191 last year – with children as young as four years old being included in these figures.

The suspensions were granted for incidents such as using racist abuse, physical racist attacks and also race-hate vandalism including offensive graffiti.

Shockingly there were incidents where pupils were caught by teachers calling each other the N-word and the P-word. 

For older children they are getting suspended for posting racist content or comments on social media platforms.

Children in Year 8 are the group that gets into the most trouble for racism, according to the report.

These pupils is usually aged between 12 and 13.

The Department for Education released the data after a Freedom of Information request, the newspaper reported.

A spokesperson for the Department for Education, said: “These figures are unacceptable. We are clear that racism and discrimination have absolutely no place in our schools and we will always support our hard-working teachers to provide safe and calm classrooms.

“The Education Secretary is committed to a comprehensive programme of behaviour support for schools, starting with new attendance and behaviour hubs They will directly target the schools with the highest need as well as wider support for schools in all corners of the country.

“More broadly, our Plan for Change places a relentless focus on giving every child the best start to tackle root causes of behaviour, including establishing free breakfast clubs in every primary school and providing access to mental health support in every school.”

Read the brilliant article written by The Voice here.