UK (Commonwealth Union)_ According to new research, parents in England no longer support the view that their children need to be in school full-time, and due to the pandemic, there has been “a seismic shift” in attitudes to attendance.
For years, attendance at school by all students every day throughout term has been part of a social contract among schools and families, but the recent report says this is no longer the case.
The disruption, first caused by Covid, then compounded by a cost-of-living crisis, and an epidemic of mental ill health among young individuals, has led to what researchers describe as a deep breakdown in the relationship between schools and parents from across the socioeconomic spectrum.
As a result, some parents do not believe that it is their responsibility to see that their child is in school every day, triggering “a full-blown national crisis” in school attendance that will need “a monumental, multi-service effort” if it is to be reversed, the report states.
Overall absence in schools in England has increased by 50% since 2019, while persistent absence – when students miss 10% or more of sessions – has more than doubled, prompting widespread concern and a range of interventions by ministers.
The report, gathered by the public policy research agency Public First, draws on focus group conversations with parents from different backgrounds across the country, which shed some light on why children are not always in lessons.
During lockdowns, some of the ways in which schools delivered learning also had changed perceptions of the importance of attendance.
Meanwhile, term-time holidays have become socially acceptable across all socioeconomic groups, while recent strike days by teachers have helped further undermine the “every day matters” narrative on attendance.
A parent from Long Eaton, Derbyshire, with two children aged 13 and 17, said, “I think mainly this year, with all the teacher strikes, parents have been laxer and think: ‘Well, the teachers aren’t in, so if I want to take my child out for a few days, I’ll do it because they’ve done it.’”
The report recommends fines for non-attendance should be reviewed and potentially eliminated, since they are deeply unpopular and only serve to further alienate parents. It also highlights that the pressures on special educational needs and mental health services play an important part in the attendance crisis and recommends to invest in these two areas and will improve attendance.
The general secretary of the NAHT school leaders’ union, Paul Whiteman said, “The government needs to redouble its efforts and commit the necessary resources to handle this issue. In certain, there needs to be greater investment in specialist teams which work directly with students who often miss school and their families.”
A Department for Education spokesperson mentioned that ministers have increased the attendance mentors and the attendance hubs. He said, “We have also brought together an attendance action alliance of leaders from across education, social care, and health to discuss the importance of the issue and its features.”
