Children and young people spend a great deal of their time in schools and other education settings. Consequently those working in such contexts have a huge impact and influence on the development, experiences and thinking of the children and young people with whom they interact.This book represents the bringing together of the richness and variety of ideas shared by some of the contributors to the first European Conference on Child and Adolescent Mental Health in Education Settings, held in Paris in 2005 and hosted by the Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust. When organising this event it was our intention to gather together child mental health and educational professionals from across Europe to share innovative practice. The success and impact of this conference was such that it became the first of what is now a bi-annual series of events each taking place each in a different European city.

Excluded From School exposes the reasons why, despite many national and local initiatives, large numbers of children continue to tax the education system to such a degree that they become permanently excluded from school. Sue Rendall and Morag Stuart draw on their experience in psychology and education to demonstrate the need for a more thorough exploration of the underlying root causes of the problem. Based on a systemic framework, their approach allows the inclusion of a vast range of possible contributory factors: within the child, within the family, within the school, and within the complex interrelations between these three systems. By demonstrating the need for inter-discipline and inter-agency collaboration, the authors succeed in presenting a persuasive challenge to the blame culture which exists between schools, parents and educational professionals and policymakers in relation to school exclusion. The original research presented here, along with the inclusion of the experiences of children, parents and teachers, provides a valuable new perspective on the problem of school exclusions that will be welcomed by all professionals working in this field.

Children and young people spend a great deal of their time in schools and other education settings. Consequently those working in such contexts have a huge impact and influence on the development, experiences and thinking of the children and young people with whom they interact. This book represents the richness and variety of ideas shared by some of the contributors to the first European Conference on Child and Adolescent Mental Health in Education Settings, held in Paris in 2005 and hosted by the Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust. The intention of the event was to gather together child mental health and educational professionals from across Europe to share innovative practice. The success and impact of this conference was such that it became the first of what is now a bi-annual series of events each taking place in a different European city.

"Excluded From School" exposes the reasons why, despite many national and local initiatives, large numbers of children continue to tax the education system to such a degree that they become permanently excluded from school.
Sue Rendall and Morag Stuart draw on their experience in psychology and education to demonstrate the need for a more thorough exploration of the underlying root causes of the problem. Based on a systemic framework, their approach allows the inclusion of a vast range of possible contributory factors: within the child, within the family, within the school, and within the complex interrelations between these three systems. By demonstrating the need for inter-discipline and inter-agency collaboration, the authors succeed in presenting a persuasive challenge to the blame culture which exists between schools, parents and educational professionals and policymakers in relation to school exclusion.
The original research presented here, along with the inclusion of the experiences of children, parents and teachers, provides a valuable new perspective on the problem of school exclusions that will be welcomed by all professionals working in this field.