School leaders call for more fines to tackle absenteeism

SCHOOLS in Wales face a stubborn issue likely to take more than 10 years to tackle - and some parents aren't helping.

- ABBIE WIGHTWICK

Low school attendance in Wales is now "an important national concern", the education inspectorate has warned.

School leaders in a number of areas are frustrated that their local authorities won't fine parents who don't send their children in. They say this is "restricting their ability to challenge families to improve pupils' attendance".

On average, secondary age pupils miss around one day of school a fortnight - and now miss 11 days of school more each year than before the pandemic, a new Estyn report warns.

The percentage of secondary school-aged pupils persistently absent tripled to 16.3% between 2018-19 and 2022-23.

This rises to a massive 35.6% of secondary-age pupils eligible for free school meals persistently absent in 2022-23 compared with 11.2% of their better-off peers not eligible for free meals.

More than one in 10 secondary school sessions - counted as half a school day - are now being missed on average in high schools across Wales.

There is ongoing concern about absent pupils in the key GCSE Year 11.

At the current rate of improvement, it would take more than a decade for overall attendance rates to recover to pre-pandemic levels, the inspectorate estimated.

Absences are counted in school sessions and persistent absence is defined as missing 10% of those school sessions.

The percentage of pupils who are persistently absent varies enormously from 2.7% to 42.6% of pupils in secondary schools across Wales, the report notes.

Secondary school children from low-income backgrounds and living within the three-mile radius, who do not qualify for free school transport, face "significant barriers to regular attendance", the watchdog added.

Attendance of secondary-aged pupils who are eligible for free school meals remains "concerningly low".

School absence across Wales is such an ingrained issue that schools cannot tackle it alone.