Source · Select Committees · Education Committee
Recommendation 35
35
Accepted
Paragraph: 166
Conduct further research on attendance barriers for migrant pupils and those with high absence rates.
Recommendation
We heard that pupils with English as an additional language, or migrant pupils face some specific barriers to attendance. Although we asked if pupils from other ethnic minority groups faced barriers to attendance, such as Pakistani pupils, and White and Black Caribbean pupils with above average rates, we found little research or evidence on the topic. The Department should conduct further research on the barriers to attendance for migrant pupils, and those with above average rates of absence.
Government Response Summary
The Government cites existing research and will continue its current programme of research, including an evaluation of the attendance mentors programme, to further understand attendance barriers and inform future research priorities.
Paragraph Reference:
166
Government Response
Accepted
HM Government
Accepted
Migrant pupils are a very diverse group with a wide range of needs. Research utilising a case study approach encompassing qualitative data collection from school staff, governors, parents and pupils (NIESR, 20194) highlighted several issues that affected the attendance of migrant pupils including: a lack of familiarity with the education system, the practice of taking term time breaks including for visits abroad to visit family, attend special occasions, and issues of parental trust (regarding children’s welfare at school). Experimental analysis published by the Education Policy Institute (EPI) in 20215 looked at the outcomes of refugee and asylum-seeking children by triangulating data from the National Pupil Database, published asylum/migration statistics, and FOI requests to the Home Office. Whilst estimated mean absence rates were similar for unaccompanied asylum-seeking children (UASC) and non-migrant children (6.8% and 6.6% respectively) in the cohort under consideration (those children who reached year 11 in 2016/2017), absence rates were actually lower in resettled refugee or asylum support children (5.0% versus 6.6%). Recently published Departmental attendance data from the 2022/23 Autumn and Spring terms6, shows that overall absence rates are slightly lower for pupils whose first language is other than English (6.6% vs 7.4% for those whose first language is English). The Department’s data consistently shows that pupils from vulnerable and disadvantaged groups (children with SEN, children in need and looked after children, and children eligible for free school meals) are more likely to be persistently absent than their peers. The Office of the Children’s Commissioner have recently published further evidence on looked after children, finding that 2.7% of them were not in school.7 Within this group, unaccompanied asylum seeking children were disproportionately more likely not to be in school.8 The Government’s current ‘support first’ approach to reducing absence recognises that the reasons for absence are varied and complex. We will continue with our current programme of research, including evaluation of the attendance mentors programme, which will enable us to further understand the types of barriers that a range of pupils with above average rates of absence are facing in attending school. Findings from the evaluation will help us to focus any further research on particular barriers, or cohorts, where identified as priority evidence gaps.