MPs will investigate causes and possible solutions to persistent absence in schools as part of a new inquiry.
Launching the new inquiry today, the Commons Education Select Committee warned that the number of pupils persistently absent from school doubled during the Covid crisis,
Possible connections between persistent absence and economic disadvantage, special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) and ethnic background will be probed, along with whether a child or a family member is clinically vulnerable to Covid-19.
The committee has said it will question experts and education sector leaders on current government proposals and plans, such as those to improve schools’ data collection on attendance, and will also look at other solutions.
Speaking to Tes, committee chair Robin Walker said that other possible remedies for persistent absence could include breakfast clubs and after-school or holiday activities, along with having a “proper strategy for sport” and “engaging students on things other than just the academic subjects”.
He also pointed out that the committee had previously called for a statutory register of children not in school and was “very keen” that it kept up the pressure for that.
Mr Walker also noted that schools alone could not solve the issue of persistent absence, saying: “It’s not just for the schools to meet this challenge, we need to look at a whole system approach.
And despite admitting there were “enormous pressures” facing schools and other sectors financially, he said that schools did have enough money to implement solutions, referencing the extra £2 billion a year awarded at last year’s Budget.
He said: “We understand that the whole sector is facing big inflationary pressures, but actually there is more money going in.
“What we want to make sure is that that’s being effectively used and I think one of the concerns about absence is that it means resources are not being used as effectively as they might be and they aren’t reaching the children for which it’s intended.”
Pupils are identified as persistent absentees if they miss 10 per cent or more of their possible sessions.
Statistics from last year showed that 33.6 per cent of pupils who were eligible for free school meals were persistently absent in autumn 2021, compared to 20 per cent of pupils who were not eligible.
And 30.6 per cent of pupils who receive SEND support were persistently absent in autumn 2021, compared with 21.5 per cent for pupils who are not identified with SEND.
Traveller of Irish Heritage and Gypsy/Roma pupils had the highest overall absence rates at 20.7 per cent and 16.5 per cent in autumn 2021, and similar patterns are shown in persistent absence rates.
The new inquiry follows on from the work of previous committee chair - and now Department for Education minister - Robert Halfon, who was vocal on the need to tackle the problem that he described as “ghost children” missing from schools.
And late last year the DfE launched a new dashboard, which it said would allow staff to spot trends in persistent absence.
The committee is currently inviting written submissions of evidence, which can be submitted here by Thursday 9 February.
