Schools are getting tough on parents and carers who don’t send their children to school. Latest Welsh Government data out today shows absence is still a major problem across Wales with more than one in 10 pupils missing lessons on average since the start of the academic year - and more in some cases.
Fines for not sending children to classes were re-introduced at the end of last year after being put on hold during the pandemic. But one headteacher said £60 fines were not always enough.
Cardiff’s Meadowlane Primary has recently taken two sets of parents to court successfully because being fined had not worked to bring their children to school.
Read more: Parents say they can't afford to send their children to school
Meadowlane Primary headteacher Chloe Ford said: “We have had two cases so far that we have taken to court. That has brought the children back. You never want to take it to court but these children need us to be here. If their parents are not engaging we have no choice but to take tougher steps."
Like other headteachers she has been sending messages and letters to families telling them the importance of bringing their children to school and explaining their may be fines or legal action if they don’t. Schools are struggling to get attendance back up to pre-pandemic levels even so .
“Attendance is an ongoing challenge. When £60 fines are issued that does not always work in some cases,” Mrs Ford admitted.
“Where attendance is so low it almost becomes a safeguarding issue and those families are being taken to court. We need the children in school for their learning and wellbeing.”
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Before fines or legal action schools said they first try to speak with families and send letters and messages. Meadowlane also has a family liaison officer who goes out to speak to parents and has a "walking bus" with teachers collecting children from home to walk with them to school.
“We are constantly sending home letters to parents about attendance dropping. In an ideal world we’d like it to be around 95% but at the moment it’s around 90%," said Mrs Ford.
“Attendance is a really big issue. It dropped significantly during Covid and we are not seeing it rising. We’ve seen a lot of children develop mental health issues and being in school and having consistency and relationships is crucial.
Another headteacher warned persistent school absence in Wales will take years to address and will have a long lasting effect on children’s futures. Martin Hulland, head of Cardiff West Community High, said: “We have seen a steady increase ( 1.5% on this time last year) in attendance but it will take a number of years to recover and the journey back for schools in more disadvantaged areas will take longer.”
Eithne Hughes, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders Cymru described the latest absence figure for Wales as “truly shocking and deeply concerning”. She said: “It can’t be just about Estyn pressure on schools, we need positive approaches to bring children back. The data shows children on free school meals and older children are the least likely to attend and there is a link to deprivation.”
Councils have launched benefits of school attendance campaigns. A child with an attendance rate of 90% during one school year could miss over 100 lessons, the Bridgend campaign points out as it warns: “Parents and carers of school pupils are not permitted to withdraw pupils from school during term time and any request for leave must be approved by headteachers prior to the absence.”
Launching its "Let's Get Attendance Back on Track" campaign Cardiff Council said before schools shut to Covid in March 2020 primary school attendance in the city was at 94.8% and secondary school attendance 93.2%. Since then that has dropped to 89.4% for primary schools and 88.5% for secondaries and this decrease is replicated across Wales.
Cardiff said reasons for poor attendance include:
- More pupils experiencing anxiety and for those with previous mental health conditions “an exasperated situation due to lock downs which in some cases has resulted in more serious health problems”
- Families with a poor attitude to attendance has become further entrenched and “a more casual approach to attendance from other families has emerged”
- More challenging behaviours has led to an increase in exclusions and permanent exclusions
- Many parents feeling overly cautious about sending their children to school if they are ill
Cardiff's cabinet member for education, employment and skills, Cllr Sarah Merry said: “Many learners (are) still missing days regularly. From the beginning of December 2022, Welsh Government reinstated fixed penalty notices pfor non-school attendance.
“Although the return of fixed penalty notices will not be required at all schools, some may find this will help to re-focus families and schools will ensure that all avenues to engage families have been explored prior to any request.”
Wales school attendance at a glance:
- Average all-Wales school attendance for the academic year to date - 89.3%.
- In the week to February 3 an average 89.7% of half-day school sessions were recorded as present for pupils aged 5 to 15, down from 91.1% the week before.
- An average of 6.8% of half-day school sessions were recorded as authorised absence for pupils aged 5 to 15 over the latest week, up from 6.1% the week before.
- An average of 3.5% of half-day school sessions were recorded as unauthorised absence for pupils aged 5 to 15 over the latest week, down from 2.8% the week before.
- Girls and boys are just as likely to be off. For this academic year to date attendance is 89.4% for boys and 89.2% for girls.
- Attendance is highest for pupils in Years 3, 4 and 5 (91.4%) and lowest for pupils in Year 11 (85%).
- Attendance for pupils not eligible for free school meals stands at an average 91.2% compared to 83.9% for those eligible for free school meals
- The most common reason for absence for the academic year to date has been illness, with 53.6% of sessions missed being for this reason.
Average per centage of school sessions absent by local authority
- Anglesey 11.3
- Gwynedd 10.7
- Conwy 10.9
- Denbighshire 10.9
- Flintshie 10
- Wrexham 9.3
- Powys 9.4
- Ceredigion 9.7
- Pembrokeshire 10.4
- Carmarthenshire 11.3
- Swansea 10.2
- Neath Port Talbot 12.4
- Bridgend 10.4
- Vale of Glamorgan 10.4
- Rhondda Cynon Taf 11.9
- Merthyr Tydfil 11
- Caerphilly 11.2
- Blaenau Gwent 11.8
- Torfaen 11.5
- Monmouthshire 9.5
- Newport 10.5
- Cardiff 10.3
All Wales 10.7
The Welsh government responds
A Welsh Government spokesperson said: “The Minister for Education and Welsh Language has been clear that improving school attendance rates is a national priority. We recognise that overall attendance figures are around 3% lower than before the pandemic and that the reasons for this can be complex.
"We have taken a number of measures to support families and schools, including investing an additional £4m for family engagement officers to establish positive relationships with parents and pupils.”
The Welsh Government is reviewing the definition of "persistent" absence, which is currently considered as being more than 20% absent. This measure is often set as the trigger for certain kinds of intervention such as the involvement of the Education Welfare Service.
The spokesperson added: "While fixed-penalty notices for non-attendance have been available to local authorities during the pandemic, we have generally recommended against their use. We are now at a stage where we have reverted back to the previous policy, where they can be used as a last resort.
"We remain clear that fines are to be used in only the most extreme cases, as part of a range of options and when all efforts to engage with the family have been tried and failed, and where it is evident that there are no underlying reasons that are impacting upon attendance at school. Effective immediately, therefore, all local authorities should revert to guidance on the use of fixed-penalty notices contained within the 2013 guidance on penalty notices for regular non-attendance at school."
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