More than one in seven Merton high school students were suspended from school in 2009-10, according to new Government statistics.
The figure is the third highest in the capital, with 15.3 per cent of the borough’s secondary school population, 1,307 students in total, handed fixed-period exclusions.
The London average was 8.3 per cent, with only Greenwich, just above 15.3 per cent, and Hackney, on 16.2 per cent, faring worse.
Most students, 485, were suspended for persistent disruptive behaviour, while 312 were excluded for physical assault against a pupil and 158 for verbal abuse towards an adult.
A further 35 were excluded for drug or drink reasons, 19 for sexual misconduct, and 15 for racist abuse.
The statistics were released by the Department of Education on Thursday, July 28.
The number of high school students expelled from school, 17, was also above the London average of 11.
However, behaviour at primary schools appeared to have been better, with no pupils expelled during 2009-10, and the 114 who were suspended well below the capital’s average of 158.
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