EDUCATION - "Black kids just can't act right in schools". Can they?

Black Caribbean and white/ black Caribbean mixed heritage pupils are still disproportionately represented in national school exclusion statistics and are three times more likely than white British pupils to be excluded (Ofsted report, 2008). Even with the Government's attempts to address this balance there seems to be little evidence of change over the last ten years. Why is it that black students are more likely to be excluded than any other group? Is it that “Black kids just can’t act right in schools?” Or is it that black Caribbean and white / black Caribbean mixed heritage pupils have more complex needs and need more complex initiatives from the government to deal with these issues once and for all. What are your views on this topic?

HEALTH

Nationally, Black people are on average three times more likely to be represented on a psychiatric ward and up to six times more likely to be detained under the Mental Health Act (Nottingham City Joint Strategic Needs Assessment, April 2008). In Nottingham, people from black minority ethnic backgrounds are on average twice as likely to be subject to the Mental Health Act, and people of African Caribbean descent are four times as likely to be both assessed and detained under the act (2006-2007 data, Joint Mental Health Commissioning Strategy). What are your views on the mental health issues affecting the African-Caribbean community in Nottingham, and what do you think the reasons are for such a high number of African Caribbean people being detained under the Mental Health Act?

EMPLOYMENT

Statistics from the 2001 census state that unemployment in Nottingham was 9.7% as a whole, whilst 25% was made up of BAME. Why do you think ethnic minorities, especially African Caribbean who actively seek work still encounter high levels of barriers to employment?

EDUCATION

The government aim to fully implement extended schools by 2010 as part of the plan to reduce child poverty and champion the Every Child Matters agenda. Do you think the advent of extended schools will affect the required services of supplementary schools and after school clubs?