SEND support urged to address concerning school absences, says MPs

An influx of new measures are needed to prevent school absences, state MPs, including mental health support and a more consistent approach to fines for parents.  

New research from a cross-party group of MPs has been published after they launched an inquiry into persistent absence and support for disadvantaged pupils in January. 

Experts from the Education Committee discovered school absence rates worsened during the Covid-19 pandemic and have since seen ‘no significant improvement’ and are ‘of great concern’. When the inquiry was launched at the beginning of this year, MPs discovered more than a fifth of students frequently took days off school – around double the pre-pandemic rate.

In addition, findings highlighted 1.7% of all pupils were severely absent compared to less than 1% pre-pandemic while the overall absence rate has risen to 7.6% – up from an estimated 4-5% before Covid-19.

Findings have been published in a report, which can be accessed in full here.

Within the report, the committee said: ‘Prior to the impact of the pandemic, absence and persistent absence had been gradually declining since 2010, but there is no sign of a return to this trajectory.

‘Given the time that was lost to education during the pandemic, it is of great concern that absence rates have not returned to pre-pandemic levels, and there has been no significant improvement in the speed and scale of rate reduction which is needed to prevent long-term harm to pupils.’

Following the reports unfortunate findings, the government have called for a vast number of recommendations on how to improve attendance rates within education. The government said the Department for Education (DfE) ‘should instruct schools and local authorities to explore methods of support for pupils and families before the use of fines or prosecution, ensuring legal intervention is a last resort.’

Against this backdrop, the DfE should review its framework for supporting low-income families in meeting the costs of school attendance, such as uniform and transport costs, and ensure support for households on low budgets is well advertised, the committee of MPs said.

MPs stated this should be in full swing for the 2024/25 academic year and they therefore expect the government ‘to include a suitable legislative vehicle in the next king’s speech.’

Image: Deleece Cook

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