More than 1,500 children under five suspended from school in England in a year

At least 40 children under five are suspended from school every week amid claims of a breakdown in classroom discipline.

Official figures show 1,540 nursery pupils in England were handed fixed term exclusions over a 12-month period.

Almost 1,000 were suspending for attacking teachers and fellow pupils, while hundreds more were barred for verbal abuse and disruptive behaviour.

A small number of children aged three and four were also kicked out for racism, sexual misconduct, theft and damage. Twenty children aged just two were suspended for physical or verbal assaults.