Latest news with #schoolabsences
Telegraph
4 days ago
- Politics
- Telegraph
Surge in benefits claims will follow school absence crisis
School absences are becoming 'deeply entrenched' and will push almost 180,000 pupils onto benefits, experts have said. Government data published on Thursday showed severe absence levels among pupils in England reached a record high for an autumn term last year, although overall attendance improved. More than 147,600 pupils were classed as severely absent in the autumn term of 2024, meaning they missed at least half of classes. It is up from the year before and marks the highest rate for an autumn term since comparable data began in 2016-17. The Centre for Social Justice (CSJ) think tank warned that without urgent action, the absences would drive up the number of young people missing out on future education, employment or training by nearly 180,000. This means almost twice as many teenagers risk falling out of the system as if absence had returned to its pre-pandemic level. The think tank said this would create an estimated lifetime cost to the taxpayer of £14bn. Beth Prescott, the education lead at the CSJ, said: 'Five years on from school closures, classroom absences can no longer be viewed as a post-pandemic blip. The material risk now is that this issue is becoming deeply entrenched. 'This is not just an educational problem. It is sending a bow wave of harm through our economy, driving more young people towards a life of wasted potential and benefit dependency.' Severe absence is typically lower during the autumn term, and while the latest figures are shy of a record 172,900 pupils marked as severely absent in summer 2023, the CSJ said the trend 'remains on an alarmingly upwards trajectory'. The independent think tank, which was set up by former Tory leader Sir Ian Duncan Smith, also warned progress remained 'slow' in reducing the level of pupils classed as persistently absent – meaning they miss at least a day of school each fortnight. The proportion of persistently absent pupils fell from 19.4 per cent in autumn 2023 to 17.8 per cent in the same term last year, latest fata show. This equates to 1.28 million children across England absent from class at least once every two weeks – down from 1.41 million in 2023 but still 40 per cent higher than in autumn 2019. Ms Prescott said: 'With the crisis deepening we need to attack the root causes of school absence, including softening parental attitudes to attendance and an education system that fails to engage thousands of young people.' It follows warnings that protracted school closures during the pandemic are likely to have fractured the unwritten social contract that says parents should send their children to school each day. 'Turning the tide' Experts including former Ofsted chief Amanda Spielman have suggested stubbornly high absence rates may be in part owing to parents' continuing working from home habits long after the pandemic. However, other data published by the Department for Education (DfE) on Thursday showed a brightening picture for overall attendance. The overall absence rate dropped from 6.69 per cent to 6.38 per cent, meaning around six out of every 100 pupils were missing from the classroom on a typical school day. The DfE said the slight improvement was equivalent to around 5.3 million more days spent in school for pupils in England. Bridget Phillipson, the Education Secretary, said it showed 'we are turning the tide on a crisis that saw a generation go missing from England's schools'. A DfE spokeswoman said: 'We inherited a broken school system so we are taking decisive action through our plan for change to tackle the attendance crisis – and the latest data shows positive green shoots with the biggest year-on-year improvement in attendance in a decade. 'We are making huge progress with over five million more days in school this year and 140,000 fewer pupils persistently absent, which research shows in time is likely to improve severe absence.'
BBC News
24-06-2025
- General
- BBC News
Louth dad warned over school absence to attend Lincolnshire Show
A father who received a penalty warning for taking his sons out of school to visit the Lincolnshire Show said he wants the council to change the Wilkinson, 55, received a fixed penalty warning and was told he could be fined up to £120 for taking his two sons out of their school in Louth for the day."The council shouldn't be thinking about fines. They should be thinking about subsidising children going so that more children can learn about the countryside," he County Council said schools were "advised to record absences as unauthorised unless they fall under exceptional circumstances". The Department for Education (DfE) says it is the responsibility of the local authority to decide when to issue fines to parents, meaning the process varies from council to under national rules introduced in August 2024, all schools are required to consider a fine when a child has missed 10 or more sessions (five days) for unauthorised to DfE guidelines issued in August 2024:Schools must consider fines if a child misses five or more days unauthorisedFines cost £80 if paid within 21 days, or £160 if paid within 28 daysIf a parent gets a second fine for the same child in three years, it costs £160 immediatelyFor a third unauthorised absence, other action like prosecution is considered. A court appearance could result in a fine of up to £2,500The DfE says money from fines goes to the local authority. Mr Wilkinson, who first attended the show as a child nearly 50 years ago, said the warning, which was recorded as an unauthorised absence, "came out of the blue"."The Lincolnshire Show when I was a boy was something kids went to and it wasn't an issue at school," he said."They used to alter their schooling around the two days for the Lincolnshire Show. "It is a big event. It is a day when Lincolnshire is celebrated. I can teach the kids on a one-to-one basis about the countryside." Mr Wilkinson said he knew of other parents who received warning letters. "Having to pay £75 for a family ticket to the show and then have this worry looming over you of a possible fine... does act as a deterrent," he said."People can't afford that and it's a time that [the council] could make special so that people can go visit the show." Matthew Clayton, head of education support at the county council, said: "While schools retain some discretion when marking registers, they are advised to record absences as unauthorised unless they fall under 'exceptional circumstances'."Schools will promote and remind parents of the attendance procedures and ways to manage them as part of their approach to improving attendance and reducing persistent absence."The Lincolnshire Show, which celebrated its 140th year last week, is a flagship event that celebrates the county's rural life and BBC has contacted North Cockerington Church of England Primary School for comment. Listen to highlights from Lincolnshire on BBC Sounds, watch the latest episode of Look North or tell us about a story you think we should be covering here.
BBC News
11-05-2025
- BBC News
Number of school absence fines in Barnsley double in a year
The number of fines issued to parents in Barnsley for unauthorised school absences by their children more than doubled last year, new figures reveal.A total of 5,845 penalty notices were issued in the borough for the school year 2023/24 - a 105% increase on the 2,861 dished out in the previous numbers reflect the introduction of stricter government-set attendance policies, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Trevor Cave, cabinet spokesperson for children's services at the council, said: "Improving attendance is a priority for us, and we will continue to work with schools and parents to share the importance of preventing term-time absences." There were also 1,172 penalty notices issued for parents whose children accumulated unauthorised absences despite receiving a warning letter or Notice to Improve (NTI). These notices were typically the result of ongoing, unexplained absences, rather than a one-time term-time holiday. So far this school year, Barnsley has issued 2,320 penalty notices for unauthorised borough had the highest rate of school fines issued of any council area across England last year, with 183 per 1,000 pupil the new system, which applies across England, councils must issue fines in certain cases of unauthorised absence, such as a family holiday not agreed with the school, or when attendance remains low even after a formal warning. The policy is set nationally by the Department for Education but is administered locally by each fine is £80 if paid within 21 days, rising to £160 if not paid within that time. If the fine isn't paid at all, the case can go to court, where parents may face a larger fine or other Council said the money from paid fines covered the costs of running the system, and that term-time holidays could negatively affect a child's education. Listen to highlights from South Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North
