‘Pinball kids’ at higher risk of exclusion, gangs and grooming

Thousands of “pinball kids” are pinging around the care system – frequently changing home and school and at higher risk of school exclusion, gang membership and grooming, England’s children’s commissioner has warned.

Anne Longfield’s annual Stability Index report shows that students in pupil referral units or with behavioural or emotional needs are among those more likely to experience instability.

She has raised concerns that the system has “given up” on what she calls a significant minority of children, who find themselves “bouncing from one poor school to another”.

The Stability Index tracks the experiences of children in care, using data from local authorities in England to assess how frequently children in care are moving around the system – changing home, school or social worker – over the course of a year.