The number of pupils persistently absent from school has doubled during the Covid crisis, new data published today reveals.
More than 50 per cent of secondary students were persistently absent - classed as missing 10 per cent or more of classroom sessions - in 2020-21, and more than a third (34 per cent) surpassed this threshold so far this year, according to the data.
And nearly 40 per cent of primary pupils were persistently absent in the first year of the pandemic, while more than a quarter (26 per cent) have been so during the current academic year so far, compared with around 8-10 per cent pre-pandemic, according to FFT.
Its analysis shows that just 13 per cent of pupils were classed in this category pre-pandemic.
Last term, more than a third of secondary students and a quarter of primary pupils were persistently absent, with figures even higher among disadvantaged pupils, according to the data.
The latest government data released this week revealed that pupil absence had more than tripled in just two weeks, as teachers and unions reported sending year groups home due to supply issues.
And new Department for Education data released today shows that more than one-fifth of sessions (21 per cent) - either a morning or an afternoon of lessons - were missed by pupils not attending due to Covid-related reasons last year.
The DfE data calculates that more than one in 10 (12.1 per cent) of all pupils were persistently absent in the 2020-21 academic year - a rise of 1.1 percentage points on pre-pandemic figures.
Overall, more than 100,000 additional pupils were persistently absent across the country last year than before the pandemic, rising to 872,438, according to the DfE.
FFT says its absence data shows higher numbers because it includes pupils off school due to Covid isolation, whereas the DfE excludes those in its calculations.
The disadvantage gap has widened
Before the pandemic, disadvantaged absence rates were two percentage points higher for disadvantaged pupils at primary school than for their peers. Now, the gap has risen to three percentage points, according to FFT.
And at secondary, the gap rose from four percentage points higher than their peers to between six and seven points.
New research published by NFER last week revealed that despite targeted funding and initiatives, disadvantaged pupils were not recovering at the same rate as their peers by summer 2021.
The FFT figures also reveal that for pupils with special educational needs and disability (SEND) and an education, health and care plan at primary, absence rates were around three percentage points higher than for other pupils.
And at secondary, rates were between three and four percentage points higher pre-pandemic, but are now around seven points.
130,000 pupils now miss more school
Today’s analysis by FFT also revealed a large increase in the number of pupils who had more absence than attendance recorded.
The data shows that pupils who missed half or more of their classroom sessions had more than doubled in primary schools so far this year compared with pre-pandemic figures (from 0.4 to 0.8 per cent).
The figures show that the number of secondary students missing more than 50 per cent of their school sessions had risen to 3.3 per cent - a 2.1 percentage point increase.
FFT argues that while this figure might seem slight, it amounts to around 75,000 more pupils logged as more absent than not when compared with pre-pandemic levels - making a total of 130,000 pupils.
Its analysis found that this increase in persistent absence was “overwhelmingly due to an increase in authorised absence”.
Last year, the DfE announced that schools would get advisers to tackle persistent absence.
But school leaders criticised the move, saying tackling persistent absence has been made harder due to budget cuts and that it won’t be solved by “one-off visits”.
