Source · Select Committees · Public Accounts Committee
Recommendation 15
15
Accepted
Improved real-time attendance data from schools enables better trend analysis and benchmarking.
Conclusion
The Department highlighted that it was now collecting better data, drawn directly from state-funded schools’ own management information systems, which it could look at in detail, in real time. Schools voluntarily signed up to provide data and about 80% were doing so. The Department told us how it was now providing benchmarking data back to schools to allow them to compare themselves against other similar schools.29 In addition, better data allowed the Department and other partners to see trends, issues and solutions in a way that had not been possible before.30 Support for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities
Government Response Summary
The government agrees with the committee's observation on the importance of data, committing to build on existing absence analysis and use available data during 2023-24 to better understand absence rates among disadvantaged pupils.
Government Response
Accepted
HM Government
Accepted
2.1 The government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation. Target implementation date: July 2024 2.2 Over the academic year 2023-24, the department will build on existing absence analysis and use available data to develop a better understanding of why disadvantaged pupils have higher rates of absence than others, including in identifying any new post-pandemic trends. 2.3 The government disagrees with the Committee's recommendation. 2.4 The department is strongly committed to reducing absence among disadvantaged pupils. The current approach includes comprehensive measures and a system-wide strategy that is already supplemented by targeted action to address the underlying causes of absence rates among disadvantaged pupils. New guidance places an expectation on schools to use data to identify at-risk pupils, then work with families to support absent students, while local authorities are required to establish an attendance support team and hold termly meetings with every school to plan interventions for children at risk of persistent or severe absence. 2.5 These expectations provide a framework for identifying children who need additional support. They are supplemented via targeted programmes that will particularly benefit disadvantaged pupils. These include the Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) programme (£200 million annually), the National School Breakfast Programme (£30 million) and - to address wider multiple challenges - the Supporting Families programme (an additional £200 million). The government has also committed to investing £2.6 billion via the Special Educational Needs and Disability (SEND) and Alternative Provision (AP) improvement plan, and £2.9 billion annually in pupil premium funding, the latter of which can be used to address non-academic barriers such as attendance difficulties.