A Wandsworth dad has issued a heartfelt plea in the hopes that his daughter may return to school before she suffers "irreparable damage".

Earlier this year, Skye Gill, a year 9 pupil and former Ark Putney Academy (APA) student was involved in an altercation with another student.

As a result, the school decided to suspend both Skye and the other student, but Skye's parents, Keith and Louise, appealed the decision.

With a possible suspension looming and seemingly no middle ground between the Gill family and the school, Keith and Louise made the decision to sign her out of APA and home-school her instead, with the hope to eventually transfer.

But four months on, the family are still waiting.

"My wife feels that the head teacher suggested this was the most expedient course to facilitate a transfer in our situation," Keith said.

"In actuality it was the worst thing for us as the education department now have no obligation to Skye."

The family have applied to enrol Skye at Burntwood Academy, but she is 9th in line for a spot.

Keith says this is a crucial time in her development and doesn't want to see her suffer as a result of not attending a physical classroom.

"Since the summer holidays Skye has been talking daily about returning to school," Keith added.

"She is missing her friends and social interaction with her peers. She has begun to express a resignation of never returning to school.

"Her horizons and ambitions have changed from being an author or film maker to working in Starbucks.

"She talks about not knowing what to say when in conversation with the few remaining contacts in her peers group.

"She is changing from an ambitious adventurous individual to a resigned nonchalant person, which I suspect hides her disappointment and lowered morale."

Keith works seven days a week to make ends meet and now on top of that must ensure Skye applies herself to keep up with the year 9 curriculum.

Skye still attends drama classes, as she has done since the age of four and has expressed a consistent interest in arts and media.

But her dad now worries about what a lack of social engagement will mean for her goals of entering the media industry.

"I believe that we have a window of opportunity to ensure that this hiccup in Skye's development does not do irreparable damage to her personality or future," he added.

"I think a quick return to school is the only way to avoid the consequences of any further interruption to her development."

Billy Cometti, Head of Communications at Ark on behalf of Ark Putney Academy, said: "Ark Putney Academy would never advise a parent to withdraw their child for home-schooling and we did not do so in this case.

"Although confidentiality issues prevent us from sharing any details specific to this student, we always encourage our young people to stay enrolled in school and we work closely with families and carers to address any lapses in attendance."