Anna Price to Gemma Thomson: Compliance review of pupil suspensions and expulsions in Northern Ireland statistics 

Dear Gemma,

Compliance review of pupil suspensions and expulsions in Northern Ireland statistics

We have completed a compliance review of pupil suspensions and expulsions statistics produced by the Department of Education (DE) against the standards of the Code of Practice for Statistics (the Code). These statistics are currently published as official statistics in development. Our review considered how the statistics have been developed in relation to the Code and whether there are any areas for further improvement.

Based on the findings of our review, we conclude that the statistics generally meet the standards of the Code. DE communicates quality and methods information clearly and transparently, and has plans to further strengthen data collection and quality through the introduction of a new Management Information System (MIS).

The review also identifies a small number of areas where further action is needed. We have made three recommendations which aim to address these, including improving transparency about the MIS transition and expanding user engagement. In line with our guidance for official statistics in development, DE should also publish a clear development plan, explaining the scope and nature of the development and setting out the timeframe it is expected to run. Once the new MIS is fully embedded and its impact on data quality is understood, DE should assess whether the statistics are ready to be published as official statistics and remove the ‘official statistics in development’ label as soon as practicable.

We expect DE to publish its annual statistical work programme by October 2026, and to provide a public update on its progress implementing the MIS and our recommendations by December 2026.

Yours sincerely,

Dr Anna Price

Joint Head of Regulatory Compliance for OSR