Source · Select Committees · Education Committee
Seventh Report - Persistent absence and support for disadvantaged pupils
Education Committee
HC 970
Published 27 September 2023
Recommendations
2
Accepted
Para 20
Mandate schools' participation in the daily attendance data dashboard as soon as possible.
Recommendation
We welcome the daily attendance data pilot, the Department’s intention to mandate schools’ participation, and to replace the School Census. Given that around 80% of schools have been successfully using the dashboard over the last academic year, for consistency, we …
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Government Response Summary
The government agrees with the recommendation and intends to introduce regulations to mandate daily attendance data sharing for all state-funded schools no sooner than September 2024, subject to further engagement.
Department for Education
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3
Deferred
Para 28
Government commitments to a national register of children not in school remain unfulfilled.
Recommendation
The Department monitoring daily school attendance is a welcome step, but further monitoring is needed to identify and support those children not receiving a formal education. We have repeatedly called for a register of children not in school and were …
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Government Response Summary
The government remains committed to introducing local authority registers for children not in school and will legislate at a 'future suitable opportunity' while continuing to work on improving non-statutory registers.
Department for Education
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4
Deferred
Introduce a register of children not in school fully operational for the 2024/25 academic year.
Recommendation
We urge the Government to deliver on its commitment to introduce a register of children not in school to be fully operational for the 2024/25 academic year. We therefore expect the Government to include a suitable legislative vehicle in the …
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Government Response Summary
The Government remains committed to legislating for a register of children not in school but will do so at a future suitable opportunity, not confirming a specific legislative vehicle or the 2024/25 deadline.
Department for Education
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6
Accepted
Implement statutory guidance on school attendance to be applicable from September.
Recommendation
The Department should implement statutory guidance to be applicable from September
Government Response Summary
The Government agrees to make the existing ‘Working together to improve school attendance’ guidance statutory, will review and update it with new sections on mental health and SEND, and commit to revising pupil registration regulations.
Department for Education
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7
Accepted
Para 46
Ensure all schools across the country can access good support for tackling persistent absence.
Recommendation
We heard that support offered by local authorities can vary significantly. For example, since the funding for Education Welfare Officers has been devolved to schools, it has become a “traded good” for most schools, and a postcode lottery for pupils. …
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Government Response Summary
The government states it is already closely monitoring local authority support and that its 'Working together to improve school attendance' guidance sets out core functions for attendance staff, which it monitors through a team of advisers working with every local authority.
Department for Education
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8
Accepted
Conduct an audit of local authority support for persistent absence and assess EWO funding impact.
Recommendation
The Department should conduct an audit of support provided by local authorities to tackle persistent absence. As part of this, the Department should make an assessment of the impact of providing funding for Education Welfare Officers through schools, compared to …
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Government Response Summary
The government states it is already closely monitoring local authority support for attendance through a team of advisers working with every local authority, reviewing their approach and supporting plan implementation, and notes the significant change in LA roles since 2014.
Department for Education
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9
Accepted in Part
Para 55
Department lacks urgency in addressing inconsistent and unregulated use of attendance fines.
Recommendation
There is evidence that prior to the pandemic, fines played a role in reducing unauthorised absence. However, it is less clear if they are an effective deterrent for families who are facing some of the current barriers to attendance we …
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Government Response Summary
The government published its consultation response in August 2023, confirming its commitment to improving consistency in local enforcement and welcomes evidence for future regulatory or legislative changes to establish a national framework, while reiterating its commitment to making guidance statutory when parliamentary time allows.
Department for Education
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10
Deferred
Para 56
Require legal intervention as last resort, introducing a national framework for consistent attendance fines.
Recommendation
We recommend the Department instruct schools and local authorities to explore methods of support for pupils and families before the use of fines or prosecution, ensuring that legal intervention is a last resort only. The Department should be more explicit …
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Government Response Summary
The Government states its guidance already promotes a 'support first' approach but will use the inquiry's evidence to inform future regulatory or legislative changes for a national framework on fines, and remains committed to legislating for statutory guidance when parliamentary time allows.
Department for Education
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11
Accepted in Part
Roll out attendance interventions nationally, starting with a national expansion of attendance mentors.
Recommendation
We welcome the increase in attendance mentors and the expansion of attendance hubs. Geographical alignment with Education Priority Investment areas gives some insight into the Department’s priorities but we are persuaded that measures need to be rolled out nationally to …
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Government Response Summary
The government welcomes support for attendance mentors and hubs, announcing a further expansion of the attendance hub program and an intention to double the number of hubs. It will consider options to expand mentoring investment to more local areas in 2024/25, but stops short of committing to a national rollout.
Department for Education
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15
Deferred
Para 78
Require local authorities to report on school attendance for pupils attending breakfast or holiday clubs.
Recommendation
We recommend the Department require local authorities to report on school attendance levels for pupils who have attended a breakfast club or holiday club. If a significant impact can be demonstrated, the Government should consider this in future funding decisions.
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Government Response Summary
The government deflects the recommendation by focusing on the linkages between persistent absence and home education, rather than addressing the call to require local authorities to report on attendance at breakfast or holiday clubs.
Department for Education
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17
Deferred
Para 88
Commission research to test the link between sports-based interventions and improved school attendance.
Recommendation
We recommend the Department commission research to test the link between sports- based interventions and improved attendance. As part of this, the Department should look to the third sector for effective practice examples.
Government Response Summary
The government responded by outlining its existing 'Working together to improve school attendance' guidance from May 2022, rather than committing to commissioning research on sports-based interventions and attendance.
Department for Education
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19
Not Addressed
Implement an enrichment guarantee for pupils with KPIs focused on improving school attendance.
Recommendation
As the Centre for Social Justice have recommend, the Department should implement an enrichment guarantee for pupils in school including the use of sport, music, drama and art, looking to the youth sector for best practice. This guarantee should have …
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Government Response Summary
The government does not commit to an enrichment guarantee or associated KPIs, instead stating that pupil premium and recovery premium funding, through its menu of approaches, already allows schools to fund extra-curricular activities like sport, music, drama, and art to address non-academic barriers to attendance.
Department for Education
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20
Deferred
Para 106
Take greater care when reporting SEND attendance statistics to avoid unhelpful comparisons.
Recommendation
Absence rates in special schools have always been significantly higher than in mainstream educational settings. We understand the SEND cohort have higher absences for legitimate and unavoidable reasons, thus making comparisons with other cohorts difficult. We recommend the Department take …
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Government Response Summary
The government's response detailed a new burdens assessment undertaken in Spring 2022, which is unrelated to the recommendation about taking greater care when reporting special school attendance statistics.
Department for Education
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22
Accepted
Para 108
Unmet needs remain a significant barrier to school attendance for SEND pupils.
Recommendation
Whilst the SEND and AP improvement plan provides a useful framework for improving outcomes for this group of pupils, it is evident that unmet needs prevails as a very significant barrier to school attendance. Whilst we understand funding pressures, it …
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Government Response Summary
The government acknowledges the importance and details the ongoing SEND and AP improvement plan, which includes £2.6 billion investment for up to 60,000 new specialist places, monitoring attendance data, new national standards, and a Change Programme (2023-2025) to ensure pupils get timely support and improved attendance.
Department for Education
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23
Accepted
Para 109
Prioritise resource for inclusion and assessment in mainstream schools to support SEND pupils.
Recommendation
The Department should prioritise resource for inclusion and assessment in mainstream schools, to ensure they are adequately set up to support SEND pupils and address the current level of unmet need, and therefore improve their attendance rates.
Government Response Summary
The Government acknowledges the importance of improving SEND support and commits £2.6 billion between 2022-25, including investment in mainstream and special schools, to fund new specialist places and a SEND and AP change programme aimed at improving attendance and addressing unmet needs.
Department for Education
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25
Accepted
Para 119
Scrutinise alternative provision use to improve attendance, discouraging its application for behaviour management.
Recommendation
It is clear that alternative provision should only be a time-limited intervention with clear structures to ensure each pupil’s needs are being effectively supported. The Department should scrutinise its use and ensure they’re being used as methods of support to …
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Government Response Summary
The government acknowledges the need to ensure alternative provision is a time-limited intervention for support, and is testing a new AP system model through a Change Programme, focusing on targeted support, time-limited placements, and reintegration to improve attendance and reduce preventable exclusions.
Department for Education
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27
Deferred
Para 132
Lead a cross-government assessment of pupil mental health and ensure adequate CAMHS provision.
Recommendation
The Department should also lead a cross-government assessment of the scale of mental health difficulties amongst pupils, and review the current provision of support available in schools and outside of them. The Government should conclude this review and report its …
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Government Response Summary
The government discussed the Department's monitoring of local authority support and their role in attendance, completely sidestepping the recommendation for a cross-government mental health assessment and CAMHS review.
Department for Education
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28
Rejected
Para 133
Lack of authorised mental health absence code burdens families with medical evidence.
Recommendation
Mental health-related absences are not commonly authorised by schools, sometimes due to requirements to provide medical evidence which can often lead to fines or prosecution for families. The introduction of an authorised mental health absence code could eliminate the need …
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Government Response Summary
The Government rejects introducing a specific mental health absence code, arguing it would be unhelpful, burdensome for schools to differentiate illness types, and likely lead to inaccurate data, while affirming existing guidance for authorising mental health-related absences under the 'illness' code.
Department for Education
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31
Accepted
Launch a public information campaign guiding parents on school attendance during illness.
Recommendation
We recommend the Department should launch a targeted public information campaign to guide parents on when and when not children who are unwell should attend school. Close working between the Department and the Department for Health and Social Care will …
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Government Response Summary
The government welcomes the recommendation and has already launched a regional public information campaign, working with DHSC, providing guidance on children's school attendance during illness, with plans for a national rollout in January based on the regional campaign's success.
Department for Education
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33
Deferred
Para 149
Review framework supporting low-income families with school costs and issue best practice guidance.
Recommendation
Ultimately, pupils from low-socio economic backgrounds should not be prevented from receiving an education due their financial situation, and this should be considered a priority for the Department as the cost of living continues to rise. We recommend the Department …
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Government Response Summary
The government welcomed the Committee’s support for its existing expansion of attendance mentors and acknowledged the importance of individual and whole-family support, rather than committing to a review of financial support for low-income families.
Department for Education
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34
Accepted in Part
Para 150
Implement better signposting and consider requiring a single local authority support contact.
Recommendation
The Department should also implement better signposting to ensure local authorities, schools and families are aware of these measures. The Department should consider whether to require a single point of contact within each local authority that families can refer to …
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Government Response Summary
The Department agrees to seek opportunities for better signposting of support for low-income families but explicitly rejects requiring a single point of contact within local authorities, stating existing avenues for support are sufficient.
Department for Education
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35
Accepted
Para 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 …
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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.
Department for Education
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37
Acknowledged
Roll out national measures to support Gypsy, Roma and Traveller pupils using best practice.
Recommendation
We recommend the Department continue to work with stakeholders from the GRT community and using examples of best practice, roll out measures on a national scale to support this pupil cohort. (Paragraph 168) 68 Persistent absence and support for disadvantaged …
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Government Response Summary
The Department will continue termly engagement with the GRT Stakeholder group, use their insights to test policy responses, and develop a good practice webinar focused on meeting GRT pupils' attendance needs.
Department for Education
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Conclusions (14)
1
Conclusion
Accepted
The rate of absence in schools in England has increased significantly since the pandemic. It is of great concern that absence rates have not returned to pre-pandemic levels. The Department recognises the problem, which is encouraging, but there has been no significant improvement in the speed and scale of the …
Government Response Summary
The government acknowledges the committee's concern regarding absence rates, noting recent data showing some improvement, and highlights ongoing efforts through existing education recovery investments, tutoring, pupil premium, and the attendance plan to address underlying causes.
5
Conclusion
Accepted
Para 44
We heard mixed reactions to the guidance working together to improve school attendance. Whilst witnesses agreed guidance on a statutory footing is needed to improve attendance, we heard from a number of witnesses that the guidance in its current form may require revisions. The Department initially planned to revise the …
Government Response Summary
The government agrees with the need for statutory guidance and commits to reviewing and updating the existing 'Working together to improve school attendance' guidance, including new sections on mental health, targeting support meetings, and updated sections on SEND and LA services.
12
Conclusion
Deferred
Although we heard that attendance mentors do work with families in circumstances when their work with the child exposes a wider set of issues, it is imperative that they conduct this work for all pupils with whole-family support at the forefront, as highlighted by best practice by School-Home Support. As …
Government Response Summary
The government's response acknowledged the value of timely attendance data and the progress of the daily data pilot, rather than addressing the recommendation to ensure whole-family support is central to the attendance mentor programme.
13
Conclusion
Deferred
Para 71
Given a major driver of low attendance is low income, it follows that measures to tackle child poverty should be considered in the Department’s approach to improving attendance. The Department should make an assessment of the eligibility criteria for Free School Meals and adjust if necessary, ensuring all children in …
Government Response Summary
The government deflects the recommendation by welcoming the Committee’s recognition of timely attendance data and the progress of the daily data pilot, rather than addressing the call to assess Free School Meal eligibility and child poverty.
14
Conclusion
Deferred
Para 77
We welcome the offer of breakfast clubs and the Holiday Activities and Food Programme for pupils with higher levels of disadvantage. This measure can be used to support attendance, and may already be doing so, but there is a lack of evidence as the Department does not require schools or …
Government Response Summary
The government's response discussed the link between persistent absence and home education, rather than addressing the recommendation for measuring the impact of breakfast and holiday clubs on school attendance.
16
Conclusion
Accepted
Para 87
We heard limited evidence that schools were offering sports-based interventions to improve school attendance, despite the benefits of sport to pupil engagement. We did hear of localised interventions that are offering some provision, but the position of these interventions is often unsecure and unsustainable due to the lack of direct …
Government Response Summary
The government acknowledges the committee's conclusion about limited sports-based interventions for attendance, but primarily describes existing programmes like the Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) programme and the Pupil Premium, which allow schools to fund sport and wider strategies to support attendance.
18
Conclusion
Deferred
The provision of enrichment activities available for pupils has declined in recent years, with £1 billion less spent on youth services than a decade ago. We heard sports-based activities provided by third sector organisations is just one example of enrichment that has been used as an intervention to improve school …
Government Response Summary
The government deflects the recommendation regarding an enrichment guarantee by discussing existing guidance, ‘Working together to improve school attendance,’ issued in May 2022, which focuses on a 'support first' ethos and attendance expectations.
21
Conclusion
Deferred
Para 107
Attendance and engagement should be seen as key metrics of educational outcomes for SEND pupils in specialist settings. However, the Department should take specific barriers into account when developing these metrics and ensure that they are not expected to behave identically to peers in other settings.
Government Response Summary
The government discussed a new burdens assessment from Spring 2022 and how local authorities are already delivering expectations, rather than addressing the recommendation to develop specific attendance and engagement metrics for SEND pupils.
24
Conclusion
Accepted
Para 118
We heard that alternative provision settings are providing useful interventions for pupils with attendance issues, we accept that it can be used as a process for reintegration. But, it is clear that alternative provision should not be seen as a long- term solution, nor should it be used to manage …
Government Response Summary
The Government acknowledges the committee's findings and is implementing alternative provision reforms through its Change Programme to ensure AP is used as a time-limited intervention, providing high-quality targeted support and building mainstream school capacity.
26
Conclusion
Accepted
Para 131
We have seen overwhelming evidence indicating a radical increase in mental health difficulties amongst school pupils since the covid-19 pandemic. With CAMHS waiting lists at all-time highs, and pupils on three-year waiting lists in some parts of the country, it is evident that the current capacity of mental health services …
Government Response Summary
The government stated it is already closely monitoring local authority support and highlighted its 'Working together' guidance, which sets clear roles for schools in addressing attendance barriers, in response to calls for more support for pupils with mental health difficulties.
29
Conclusion
Deferred
Para 134
As part of reforms to the guidance on attendance, the Department should introduce a mental health absence code, and set clear thresholds for its use.
Government Response Summary
The government's response detailed the 'Working together to improve attendance' guidance, focusing on its 'support first' ethos and the use of legal interventions, but did not address the recommendation to introduce a mental health absence code.
30
Conclusion
Accepted
Para 141
Illness was the primary reason for pupil absence before covid-19 and remains so. But parental attitudes to illness and attendance have shifted and Government messaging has been inconsistent. As a result, the illness absence rate is considerably higher now that it was pre-pandemic.
Government Response Summary
The government detailed its existing ‘Working together to improve attendance’ guidance, which focuses on prevention, early intervention, and legal measures to tackle attendance problems.
32
Conclusion
Deferred
Para 148
Transport and uniform costs were identified as barriers to school attendance, especially with recent increases to the cost of living. Although the Department provides extra support to low-income families, such as help with transport costs, it is clear from our evidence that families are not widely taking up these programmes, …
Government Response Summary
The government welcomed the committee's support for attendance mentors and related models, but did not provide the requested data on the take-up of transport cost support for low-income families.
36
Conclusion
Acknowledged
Para 167
There is clear evidence to suggest pupils from the Gypsy, Roma and Traveller community face significant barriers to attendance. Whilst the Department is aware of this, not enough is being done to support this pupil cohort, and community interventions are filling the gap in localised areas. Whilst the Department does …
Government Response Summary
The Department will continue to convene the GRT Stakeholder group termly, engage them on attendance issues, and develop a good practice webinar focused on meeting GRT pupils' attendance needs.