- Over 10,000 children left the state education system to destinations unknown to their local authorities in a year, a new report from the Children’s Commissioner has found.
- Around 13,000 other children left the state education system for home education. These children were disproportionately more likely to have special educational needs or to come from disadvantaged areas.
- Nearly 3,000 further children were out of education completely – children who were much more likely to have come from deprived neighbourhoods and to be known to social care.
Shocking new statistics show that local authorities in England have no idea what has happened to 10,181 children who left state education between Spring 2021/22 and Spring 2022/23, the Children’s Commissioner revealed today.
The data also shows around 13,120 further children left the state education system for home education, with many parents reporting this was a last resort.
Children who left state education to be home educated were disproportionately more likely to have special educational needs or to live in disadvantaged areas.
And 2,868 became a child known or suspected to be missing education completely. These children were much more likely to live in deprived neighbourhoods and to be known to social care.
Dame Rachel de Souza, the Children’s Commissioner said: “Local authorities told my office that they were worried about children missing education and did not have the resources or powers to identify and support all these children to return to school.”
One of the first things the Children’s Commissioner did when she took up her post in 2021 was to conduct a nationwide inquiry into the educational experiences of all those children leaving state education. These children had fallen off the radar during the pandemic. Local authorities confided that they did not know where some of the children in their locality had gone or how to support them to reengage in education.
Three years later this analysis shows that this is still a significant issue. Thousands of children continue to leave state education at an unprecedented rate. Many have started to disengage, and some have left the school system altogether.
Published today, ‘Lost in Transition? The destinations of children who leave the state education system’, shines new light on the vulnerabilities of children who left the state education system last year. For the first time, analysis has been carried out on the destinations, characteristics and educational histories of children who left state education.
Data analysis found that most of the children who left state education to go to home education were aged 11 to 14 (64%). Most of the children who had unknown destinations were aged four to nine (54%), as were many of those known or suspected child missing education (41%).
Most parents interviewed for the report said they had opted for home education as a last resort, with parents detailing a series of incidents where schools had not offered the support their child needed to engage in education. Over 80% of all children who moved into home education were persistently or severely absent in the previous year. All of this shows that we must do more to tackle the root causes of absenteeism and give children the support they need to engage and thrive in school.
Children’s Commissioner Dame Rachel de Souza said:
“I am deeply concerned to see just how many children are falling through the cracks after leaving the state-funded education system. While the reasons for leaving school may vary, my report highlights that thousands of children are simply unknown to local authorities.
“Since I became Commissioner, I have made children’s education an absolute priority. I have spoken to thousands of children who have told me about how important school is for them, but this report shows too many young people are finding themselves out of education.
“I am determined to use my role to make the right to education a reality for all children. Wherever they grow up, whatever their background and whatever their needs, children deserve a world class education which is as ambitious for them, as they are for themselves.
The report’s main recommendations include:
- A more inclusive school system with a priority on policies for attendance, alternative provision, student’s mental health and a focus on SEND.
- Powers to identify children in education, with each child having a unique ID and local authorities being given powers to direct admissions.
- Protections for children with additional vulnerabilities, with a consistent national threshold for Early Help and social workers to be trained in educational neglect.
- An accountability system which enshrines every child’s right to education.
The report from the Children’s Commissioner’s office identified a total of 81,940 children who left state education. These were children of compulsory school age who were previously recorded in either a state-funded school or local authority commissioned alternative provider (AP) in the 2021/22 Spring censuses but who did not appear to be in state-funded schools or local authority commissioned alternative provision in the following 2022/23 Spring censuses. Their destinations also included moving abroad, independent schools, and unregistered settings.