"Good" marks for school attendance in Royal Borough

Royal Borough pupils are continuing to score good marks for attendance at school, with absences once again down on previous years and significantly below the national average.

Attendance at both primary and secondary schools are on the up and continue to buck national trends – with particular improvement in secondary school attendance.

These encouraging statistics - welcomed by members of the children's services and leisure overview and scrutiny panel – will be reported to cabinet at its meeting on June 26.

Cllr Eileen Quick, lead member for children's services, welcomed the statistics.  She said: "This report highlights very clearly the fact that absence from school for any reason really does have a negative effect on learning – and that a relatively small increase in the number of days off school can lead to a significant drop in subsequent attainment.

"Non-attendance happens for a variety of reasons including illness, holiday, truancy or more complicated reasons.  Any level of persistent non-attendance is a cause for concern, but if a child doubles his or her days off – from say 15 to 30 days during the course of a year – then they halve the probability of getting good A-C grades at GCSE.

"It is vital that parents understand the importance of making sure their child attends school regularly.  The council is legally responsible for enforcing attendance in schools, as well as offering advice and information to help schools maximise attendance.  Area teams work closely with school staff to monitor young people whose attendance begins to slip and to undertake casework with vulnerable families or carers where attendance is unsatisfactory.

"With the end of the current school year almost upon us, many children will be facing a move to another school in September. The transition can be difficult for some children. Schools work hard to prepare children. We can provide a range of services to support young people who may find this an especially unsettling time."

Council services available to children who might need extra help and support to ensure regular attendance include:
· an attendance strategy manager to work with schools and families to develop attendance strategies
· the Education Welfare Service which provides an education welfare officer for every school to monitor unexplained absences and work with families and the school to resolve issues surrounding poor attendance
· the Educational Psychology service whose staff regularly visit schools aiming to remove or reduce barriers to learning by working with staff, pupils and their families to develop strategic and individual support
· the Connexions service, funded by the council's community and youth service, which provides both individual and group support to young people in the 13-19 age group.

Support is also provided for children with special educational needs, minority ethnic children, young carers, travellers, pregnant schoolgirls and teenage parents.