Absences have led disadvantaged secondary school pupils to fall ‘further behind’

Rising rates of pupil absences in secondary schools have led to disadvantaged young people falling further behind their peers since the pandemic, a report has suggested.

Pupil absence is a “key, and growing, driver” of the attainment gap between disadvantaged pupils and their peers in England, the Education Policy Institute (EPI) think tank has said.

If disadvantaged pupils had the same level of absence as their peers in 2023, the attainment gap would have been almost one month smaller at age 11 and over four months smaller at age 16, the report said.

The analysis has suggested that the growth in the disadvantage gap since 2019 – the year before the pandemic – at age 16 can be “entirely explained by higher levels of absence” for disadvantaged pupils.

The research analyses data held in the National Pupil Database, as well as pupil absence data derived from the half-termly school census, to assess the disadvantage gap among state school pupils in England.

The report – funded by Sequoia Trust and Unbound Philanthropy – found that at each key stage of schooling, more than half of the gap is explained by the size of the disadvantage gap in earlier phases.

The analysis suggested that by age seven, nearly 60% of the gap at age 11 has already developed.

The attainment gap “widened” for pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (Send) in Reception compared to their peers since the pandemic.

Children on Send support in Reception fell 0.7 months further behind between 2019 and 2023 – “one of the biggest gap-increases” of all the vulnerable groups considered at age five, the report said.

The think tank is calling on the Government to address the “root causes” of pupil absences in order to tackle the disadvantage gap.

The report recommends that the Government should prioritise early intervention and improve school readiness by increasing the early years pupil premium to match the pupil premium in later years.

Emily Hunt, associate director of social mobility and vulnerable learners at EPI, said: “For the first time, we have shown that high and increasing levels of absence among disadvantaged pupils are the primary reason why the disadvantage gap has grown since 2019 and that the Government won’t tackle the gap unless it gets to grips with the complex root causes of absence.

“Our research also highlights the reality of failing to intervene early enough in a child’s life, with prior attainment explaining half or more of the gap at each phase and confirmation that the youngest children with Send have been some of the worst impacted post-pandemic.”

Natalie Perera, chief executive of EPI, said: “A lack of early intervention and the inability of many families to access adequate Send and mental health support for their children have led to an unacceptable and unnecessary widening of inequalities.”

She added: “Every child has the right to access education yet, as today’s report finds, too many disadvantaged children are facing barriers to access and that is having a clear and detrimental effect on their outcomes.”

“Without a broader system of support, it is extremely difficult for schools to drive meaningful change in attendance rates.”

A Department for Education spokesperson said: “This Government inherited a system with a number of baked-in inequalities, and this report is further evidence that the absence epidemic is having a detrimental impact on children’s learning and their future success.

“Getting more pupils attending school regularly is a top priority for the Government.

“Through our Plan for Change we are focused on tackling the root causes of absence. This includes supporting disadvantaged pupils to achieve and thrive by establishing free breakfast clubs in every primary school, providing mental health support in every secondary school and driving up standards through our new regional improvement teams.

“Combined, these measures will ensure every child gets the best life chances, no matter their background.”