Why school attendance must be a priority for every service and professional working with children
As we approach the end of the Easter holidays and look ahead to another school term, my thoughts turn once again to the children for whom attending school is a challenge. For some, returning to school can be daunting. In my research as Children’s Commissioner, I have explored the impact of missing even the first few […]
Do schools’ worries about attendance match the reality of pupil attendance? Findings from the Children’s Commissioner’s School Census.Â
For as long as I have been Children’s Commissioner, I have been talking about school attendance. This is because attendance is not a ‘nice to have’. It supersedes everything else because, as I made clear in The Children’s Plan,i even the most well-executed and evidence-based pedagogy the teaching profession has to offer is no use […]
Why attendance remains my priority
Children understand the importance of being at school. Thousands of the children I have spoken to in my four years as Children’s Commissioner have told me about the value of their teachers, the things they like studying and the things they want to do after school. In my first major survey as Commissioner, The Big […]
New figures reveal drop in number of school absences, but attendance must remain top priority
As Children’s Commissioner, I am deeply concerned about the endemic levels of school absence which means that thousands of children are missing out on their right to education. The latest statistics from the Department for Education, show that 20.1% of children were persistently absent in Autumn 2023. While this is a welcome improvement compared to […]
Tackling the attendance crisis: A service of whole family support practitioners
By Jaine Stannard, School-Home Support CEO During the past few years, we’ve seen how the attendance crisis in the country is getting worse, not better. According to official statistics, 1.8 million children are persistently absent from school. That’s too many children. Too many children that could be left behind if the national attendance crisis is […]
Briefing on school attendance in England
Improving school attendance is an absolute priority for the Children’s Commissioner. Children are offered the best start to further their ambitions, relationships and learning when they are in school. However, despite the importance of being in school, following the pandemic school absence rates have become stuck at crisis levels. Last year, over 1 in 5 […]
The importance of attendance
As the final few days of summer come to a close, it’s time to get ready for the return to school. I know that so much work goes in to make the first week a success. Teachers are completing inset days, parents are buying pencil cases, and children up and down the country are rushing […]
New attendance figures for academic year 2021/22Â
New stats released today show that overall school absence in 2021/22 was 7.6%, higher than around 4-5% in previous years. The share of pupils persistently absent (meaning they missed at least 10% of possible school sessions) was 22.5%, up from 10-11% pre-covid. The share of pupils severely absent (meaning they missed at least 50% of […]
Attendance is everyone’s business
To support the Education Select Committee’s inquiry into children’s absence from school, This report summarises the key findings from my attendance audit.
Attendance goals need to be as ambitious as children are for themselves
I have previously set out that every school should be a school for children with Special Educational Needs and/or Disability (SEND). This means that every school should be able to offer a suitable and supportive learning environment for children with SEND, with some schools specialising in meeting the most complex and acute needs. Research for […]
Education history and attendance
Over the course of this year, I have been relentless in my focus on making sure that everyone understands what children need to thrive, to be happy and healthy. A huge part of that has been investigating children’s attendance at school. I have prioritised attendance because school is where children have told me, overwhelmingly, they […]
A 100% attendance target means no child left behindÂ
This week I am shining a light on the education system and what needs to be done to support children to attend school regularly. I have set an ambitious target for 100% attendance at school because I want to make sure that no child gets left behind or falls out of sight. Achieving this target […]
Archived Content
What’s it like to be a child growing up with HIV?
There are 801 children living with HIV in the UK. The charity Children’s HIV association (CHIVA) works to ensure young people living with HIV have the knowledge, skills and support needed to live well and to achieve their greatest potential. To mark World AIDS Day on December 1st, we spoke to members of CHIVA’S youth committee about […]
Growing up North: Creating better outcomes for children and young people
Author: Cllr Judith Blake, Leeds City Council Our ambition is for Leeds to be the best city for children and young people to grow up in – a crucial element of Leeds City Council’s work to become the best city in the UK by 2030. Child Friendly Leeds is the thread that brings together all […]
Shining a light on the experiences of children excluded from schools and in alternative provision
My ‘Children’s Voices’ report looks at findings from an evidence review of the views, perspectives and experiences of children who have been or at risk of being excluded from school and children in alternative provision.
Letter from Anne Longfield to Simon Stevens, Chief Executive of NHS England
Over the last year, the issue most often raised with me has been children’s mental health, and it was the top of the list in my consultation with children about my priorities for this year.