A new school attendance taskforce will ask Bristol teenagers why they skip school as almost a quarter of pupils are persistently absent. School attendance rates have dropped nationally since the pandemic, but even more in Bristol which is one of the worst areas nationwide for absences.
Bristol is the sixth worst local authority area in England for persistent absences, with 23.5 per cent missing at least 10 per cent of school hours, according to Ofsted. The high figures are thought to be linked to poor mental health and the ongoing effects of coronavirus lockdowns.
The taskforce will focus on pupils aged 11 to 14, in Years 7, 8 and 9, and will explore best practice elsewhere for improving attendance. Councillors voted to establish the group during a meeting of the children and young people policy committee on Thursday, January 23.
Hannah Woodhouse, executive director of children and education, said: “We have seen slight improvements in the rate of attendance, although we’re coming from a low base. In particular, persistent absences are the concern in Bristol. A small number of children are persistently absent from school for a variety of reasons.
“The service is working hard with those children, their schools and parents, to support them to re-engage with education as early as possible. We’re the sixth lowest in the country, in terms of the number of children who are persistently absent — so it’s a really significant issue.”
The task and finish group will be chaired by Labour Councillor Katja Hornchen, a supply teacher. The group will meet regularly over the next few months to explore the reasons behind the problem, before suggesting changes to the children’s committee.
She said: “I wonder if it connects to issues like the pandemic and poverty and various other things. We don’t know, so we would like to get all the figures together and then find some recommendations. More importantly, I would really like young people’s voices to be heard by us, specifically those that don’t attend.”