School Attendance (Duties of Local Authorities and Proprietors of Schools) Bill

Nickie Aiken Excerpts

3rd reading
Friday 17th May 2024 Commons Chamber

[Vicky Ford (Chelmsford) (Con)]

I beg to move, That the Bill be now read the Third time.

This Bill on school attendance is important to our nation’s children and to their futures. At time when there is so much discord in politics, it has been truly uplifting to know that, when it comes to our children, even Members of Parliament can agree with each other and do the right thing. I want to start by thanking all colleagues, from all parties, for their unanimous support for the Bill at every stage of its proceedings through the House.

As a mum, I always wanted my children to have a wide range of choices available to them, so that they could choose the best opportunities for their future. Getting five good GCSEs gives a teenager a lot of choices. With these grades, they can do A-levels, T-levels or an apprenticeship. Without them, choices suddenly become much more limited. One of the schools in my constituency analysed the performance of two identical cohorts of students. Of the group who had attended 95% to 100% of the time, 82% got five good GCSEs; about five in 30 children did not. Of the group who had attended between 90% and 95% of the time, only 68% of them got good GCSEs; that means that 10 out of 30 did not get good GCSEs. That shows how even a tiny drop in attendance can have long-lasting consequences for our children.

The Children’s Commissioner found that three quarters of children who were rarely absent from school received five good grades at GCSE including in English and maths, but of those who are persistently absent—missing 10% or more of their school time—only one in three were meeting that standard. For children who were severely absent, only one in 20 were doing so. That is why we are all so correct in being so concerned about the rise in school absences.

Before I speak about absences, I want to say that we should be extraordinarily proud of our nation’s young people. Children in England now rank 11th in the world for maths and 13th for reading, whereas back in 2010, when today’s school leavers were just starting out in reception, the same league tables placed the equivalent cohort of children 27th for maths and 25th for reading. I am really proud that every single school in my Chelmsford constituency is now ranked “good” or “outstanding”; 14 years ago under Labour, one in three kids in my constituency had to go to schools that were not even “good”. Let us be proud of our kids, but absence is a really challenging issue.

The pandemic significantly disrupted school attendance levels, not just here but across the world. About one in five pupils in England are still missing the equivalent of half a day or more of lessons a week. That means that over a million children are missing significant amounts of their education. That is limiting not only their education but their choices, their chances to make friendships and take part in enrichment activities, as well as so many other issues that are so important for their behaviour.

We know that the reasons for absence from school can be multiple and complex. Such issues include support for those with special educational needs and disabilities, anxiety or mental health issues. If a child’s SEND needs are unmet, that can lead to their missing out on their education.

Changes in attitudes towards minor ailments may be another driving force behind the rise in absences. I say to parents, who are now much more likely to keep their children at home for minor illnesses such as coughs or colds than before the pandemic, that they should please be aware that in most cases children are better off at school even if they have a minor ailment. For the most vulnerable pupils, regular attendance is also a really important protective factor. That is why I was very concerned to hear from an expert on alternative provision that attendance has dropped below 60% for the first time in some of the settings he covers.

We know that regular absence from school can expose young people to harms such as being drawn into crime or serious violence. Some commentators have noted that absence is higher among children on free school meals, but one multi-academy trust leader I spoke to who had done a lot of research at his school suggested that was not the case for all ethnic groups. Those schools he looked at with a higher proportion of pupils with English as a second language had a much higher level of attendance than school cohorts with a higher proportion of British white students. That really needs further investigation.

Another head of a multi-academy trust with schools in my area said there had been an uptick in poor attendance particularly among girls in years 8 to 10. Many other school leaders have confirmed similar trends and suggested that that may be linked to lower mental wellbeing and self-esteem. Those of us who attended Tuesday’s Westminster Hall debate on the impact of social media and screen time—particularly on teenagers and particularly on girls—noted the link between poor mental health among teenage girls and social media, and the further link between poorer mental health and higher anxiety and missing school. It is deeply concerning. There have also been stories in the press recently about the links, in some families, between the increase in hybrid working and children missing school. As a mum, I completely understand how much more difficult it must be to persuade a sometimes reluctant child to go to school if you yourself are working from home on the day in question.

All those issues are important, but my Bill will make a significant difference. It will mean that every council will have to use its services to help to remove the barriers faced by some children. It will mean that every school in the country will need to publicise a detailed attendance policy and share it with parents, pupils and carers. All schools and local authorities will have to follow best practice guidance on school attendance, which has put a great deal of emphasis on the importance of early help and multidisciplinary support. We know that some children and some parents face specific challenges when it comes to school attendance, such as transport needs or special educational needs, and the guidance covers those in detail.

Schools will be required to have a named attendance champion, and families will be aware of the expectations incumbent on them before choosing secondary schools. Local authorities will need to meet representatives of each school regularly, and together they will need to discuss cases in which multi-agency support is needed. In that event they will need to work with the agencies to provide that support, especially in cases of persistent or severe absence. The Bill provides a “support first” approach for families to help to ensure that children attend school regularly.

This is very simple but crucial legislation. I hope it will help to transform the lives of all children and young people; I hope it will reduce the unfairness whereby different amounts of support are available to families in different parts of the country by providing for a more consistent approach; and I hope it will open up a new conversation on the timings of holidays. I entirely understand the pressure on families to take time off for family holidays in term time because it is generally much cheaper, but if a child does miss out on school for that reason, it will have an impact on that child’s education and life choice, and it will not help the child in the long term.

[Nickie Aiken (Cities of London and Westminster) (Con)]

I welcome my right hon. Friend’s Bill, and I agree with her that attendance is vital to a child’s education. She has made an important point about the effect that going on holiday in term time can have on an individual pupil, but does she agree that if pupils are missing, that will have an effect on the rest of the class, and that it is not fair on the teacher or the support staff who may have to work extra hard to ensure that the child who was missing can catch up without the whole class being affected?

[Vicky Ford]

As ever, my hon. Friend has hit the nail on the head. Some children need to take time off school because, for instance, they have appendicitis and are having an operation. Teachers understand that, and will work with children in that position to help them to catch up. However, we are now seeing an increasing number of children taking time off school—perhaps because it is a Monday or a Friday and they are extending a weekend and perhaps because a parent is working from home. It is impossible for the teachers to help so many children to catch up. They just cannot, much as they would want to. All those missed afternoons and missed mornings add up to a loss of learning. Not only does that hit children’s abilities to get good GCSEs, but teachers have explained to me that if it happens in the early years it can become an ongoing behaviour. We might think, “Oh, it really doesn’t matter, they’re not in an exam year,” but it builds in the habit and it builds in with the class, so it is crucial.

In order to try to solve the holiday issue, I would like to see schools use the powers they already have to vary their term times a bit, which might give more families the opportunity to avoid peak season options. Perhaps we will see more regional changes: for example, different parts of Germany have slightly staggered school holidays so that not all the country is trying to go to the beach at the same time. I have discussed with some of the headteachers in my constituency whether we could have an Essex approach.

We had a slightly different February half-term in Essex: our Essex children had their February half-term a week after the rest of the country, which gave families a bit more flexibility. Having a regional approach meant that, for families who had primary schools kids at one school and secondary school kids at another, the family school holidays still overlapped. I would like to see more work done by schools with their local authorities to see whether they can give a bit more of that flexibility.

Coming back to the Bill, I say a big thank you to all the right hon. and hon. Members who took time to sit on the Bill Committee and to the Education Committee for its support. The Children’s Commissioner deserves an enormous amount of thanks for the work she has done on this issue, and particularly from me for the roundtable of real experts that she brought together, including children’s mental health charities, multi-academy trusts, local authority experts and others in this area. The Centre for Social Justice has also looked in depth at the impact that missing school is having on our children. I also thank the Schools Minister, especially for coming to visit a school in Chelmsford to hear directly from staff and students about this issue, and I thank the exceptional team at the Department for Education, as well as the staff in this House, for their very hard work on the Bill.

To conclude, we know that, for most children, the best place to be is in school, where they are surrounded by the support of their friends and teachers. We know that children will invariably fall behind if they miss time in the classroom, no matter how much teachers and others try to help them to catch up. We know that going to school is important not just for our children’s education, but for their wellbeing, wider development and mental health. Sadly, we also know that for many children the pandemic brought loneliness, loss of communication, loss of face-to-face time with their friends and loss of laughter—and for some children, those losses have had a lasting impact. The Bill will not be a magic wand, and it will not undo all the harms caused by covid, but it is a very firm step in a happier and more positive direction.

Oral Answers to Questions

Nickie Aiken Excerpts

Monday 16th January 2023 Commons Chamber

[Nick Gibb]

The hon. Lady will know that there is revised guidance; the new buildings bulletin has been issued after wide consultation and makes some changes to requirements for when sprinklers are to be installed in schools, particularly when the risk factor of the students in the school is high—for example, for children with special educational needs or residential schools.

[Nickie Aiken (Cities of London and Westminster) (Con)]

When I met Jewish students studying in universities in my constituency, I was appalled to learn of the antisemitism they have to suffer, often on a daily basis. That was made worse by the recent report into the National Union of Students’ handling and challenging of antisemitism. In the month when we mark Holocaust Memorial Day, I would be interested to hear the Minister’s assessment of that NUS report.

[Robert Halfon]

I have been shocked and sobered by reading that report that the NUS was in essence a hostile place for Jewish students. That is not acceptable. The National Union of Students, the main body for students, should be a place that is not just safe but welcoming for Jewish students. The proof of the pudding with this report will be in the eating; I expect to see the changes and the recommendations implemented in full, and once that has occurred I will re-engage with the National Union of Students.

Arthur Labinjo-Hughes

Nickie Aiken Excerpts

Monday 6th December 2021 Commons Chamber

[Nadhim Zahawi]

I am grateful for the hon. Member’s question. Funding is one important part of the equation—absolutely—but equally important is making sure that we look at what went wrong and why, and how we will fix that operationally. People such as Martin Narey, who I was speaking to during the week, would say to the House that this is about not only funding, but making sure we have the operational competence to support children’s social care and the frontline in doing their job. Social workers tell me all the time that the best place for them is working with families, rather than dealing with all the bureaucracy that sits behind this.

[Nickie Aiken (Cities of London and Westminster) (Con)]

I have never met a social worker who does not go to work every day to make a difference to the people they serve. I fear that, in this nation, we do not always hold social workers in the high regard that we do teachers, police officers, nurses and doctors, and that needs to change. As a former cabinet member for children’s services, I believe fully that this is about local accountability and that local councillors, whether the lead member or the leader of the council, have a role to play in keeping children safe. This is not just about the directors of children’s services and the social workers. Does my right hon. Friend agree that it is about time that the Department for Education worked with the Local Government Association and other organisations in local government to ensure that cabinet members and council leaders really appreciate the role that they have to play in keeping our children safe?

[Nadhim Zahawi]

I thank my hon. Friend for her excellent question; I touched on the answer a bit earlier. She is absolutely right—I have seen really good evidence of high-performing children’s services when the chief executive and the lead member work to support the director of children’s services and the frontline, and really understand how the system works in their locality. I can reassure her that I and the Minister responsible for children and families, my hon. Friend the Member for Colchester (Will Quince), will leave no stone unturned in the work we do on this with local government.

Oral Answers to Questions

Nickie Aiken Excerpts

Monday 18th January 2021 Commons Chamber

[Vicky Ford]

As the Opposition spokesperson knows very well, because I called her last week, we are providing that advice to settings to ensure that it is very clear that if parents are keeping their children at home because they are concerned about covid, settings can still count those children for the census, provided they are open. If they choose to close, they can furlough their staff using the other Government schemes. We will continue to monitor the situation very closely to see whether further support is needed.

[Nickie Aiken (Cities of London and Westminster) (Con)]

What steps his Department is taking to support the educational development of children in early years settings during the covid-19 outbreak.

[Jack Brereton (Stoke-on-Trent South) (Con)]

What steps his Department is taking to support the educational development of children in early years settings during the covid-19 outbreak.

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Education (Vicky Ford)]

The early years are a crucial period for a child’s development, and early years education cannot be delivered online. That is why, in June last year, the Government prioritised getting children back to nurseries and childminders. Given the negative impact of children missing education, Public Health England’s advice that the early years sector is a less significant driver of community transmission, and the low rates of infection among the very young, we advise that early years settings should remain open to all children, and we are working with early years organisations to ensure that no young child gets left behind.

[Nickie Aiken [V]]

I am proud to support and be a member of the early years healthy development review, chaired by my right hon. Friend the Member for South Northamptonshire (Andrea Leadsom). We will share our recommendations in February. The review team has found, from discussions with early years professionals, that family hubs play a vital role in ensuring that every infant gets the best start in life, including as regards their educational development. Does my hon. Friend agree?

[Vicky Ford]

I so agree with my hon. Friend. That is why we are setting up a national centre for family hubs. There are already many family hubs across the country providing a wide range of integrated services, including support for families in the early years. I visited the family hub in Westminster in her constituency to see the difference it makes to families. We want to ensure that successful approaches, such as that in Westminster, can be spread across the country.

Education (Guidance about Costs of School Uniforms) Bill (First sitting)

Nickie Aiken Excerpts

Committee stage & Committee Debate: House of Commons
Wednesday 16th September 2020 Public Bill Committees

[Nickie Aiken (Cities of London and Westminster) (Con)]

I would like to add my support to the Bill, and I congratulate the hon. Member for Weaver Vale for bringing it forward, which is important. As a mum of two schoolchildren, I have lived the school uniform life. I am delighted that my daughter has now gone into the sixth form, where they do not have a uniform policy—I enjoy the morning fashion shows.

However, my son is still in school uniform. Yes, we need to make it cost-effective and allow families of all shapes and sizes and from all walks of life and social and economic backgrounds to be able to afford it, but this is about quality as well. My experience is that a blazer for my daughter lasted five years, and that my son’s blazer lasted one year. It is about quality; we have to ensure that, although these things are cheap, they last. It is important to ensure that school uniform providers provide quality, as well as ensuring that uniforms are sold at a reasonable price.

Many school sixth forms now insist on some type of school uniform, which might be suits, particularly for boys. Again, that is a big added cost for families. In my constituency, a group of parents from Pimlico Academy has been campaigning on this issue. I understand that the school changed its policy recently and gave parents only about two weeks’ notice. The parents are concerned that this is an added financial burden for them at this moment, particularly for many who are on furlough or who have lost their jobs.

I absolutely support the ethos of the Bill, and I welcome the fact that the Government can, hopefully, ensure that families can afford decent, high-quality school uniform for their children throughout their school years.

[Margaret Greenwood (Wirral West) (Lab)]

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Ms Nokes. I pay tribute to the work of my hon. Friend the Member for Weaver Vale for his work on the Bill, and I congratulate him on the success he has had with it thus far. The Bill had its First reading on 5 March and passed its Second Reading on 13 March without a Division. Current guidance on school uniform for governing bodies, school leaders, school staff and local authorities was published in September 2013 and is non-statutory. Consequently, there are currently no binding rules on school uniforms in England.

The Bill would impose a statutory duty on the Secretary of State to issue guidance to the appropriate authorities of relevant schools in England on the costs aspects of school uniform policies. It would ensure that the appropriate authority of a relevant school must have regard to guidance issued by the Secretary of State when developing and implementing a school uniform policy for a school.

The Opposition support the Bill and have long talked about poverty-proofing schools. Indeed, tackling the cost of school uniforms is one of the ways we feel that that can be achieved. It is pleasing, too, that the Government support the Bill, and I am encouraged that the schools Minister has talked about how the Bill

“will positively improve the lives of families across this country.”––[Official Report, 13 March 2020; Vol. 673, c. 584.]

Research shows not only the high cost of school uniforms, but the vastly increased cost of school uniforms over the past few years. For example, research by the Department for Education in 2015 showed that the average total expenditure on school uniform for the 2014-15 school year up to the end of February 2015 was £212.88. Parents responding to a Children’s Society survey in March this year said that they spent an average of around £337 on secondary school uniform each year. Parents of primary school children say that they are now paying as much as £315 a child per year. With that in mind, families with three children could be paying around £1,000 a year just to send them to school in the right uniform.

It is deeply concerning that high uniform costs are putting additional strain on family finances. The Children’s Society says that 13% of families reported that they had cut back on food and other essentials because of the cost of uniforms. The impact is even greater for low-income families, with 23% saying that they had to cut back. That is a wholly unacceptable state of affairs.

The Children’s Society further noted that children had been bullied, felt left out or even been excluded from schools for wearing incorrect uniform.

On Second Reading, the Minister said that the Government will be producing statutory guidance on the cost aspect of school uniforms that makes it clear to both parents and schools that uniforms must be affordable and value for money. Can the Minister set out what specifically he considers to be the cost aspect of uniform policy? Will he ensure that parents are able to exercise choice when it comes to deciding where to buy uniforms for their children? Will it address the issue of transparency of single-supplier arrangements?

The non-statutory guidance states:

“Exclusive single supplier contracts should be avoided unless regular tendering competitions are run where more than one supplier can compete for the contract and where best value for parents is secured.”

How will that issue be dealt with in the new guidance?

Will the guidance address the issue of branding and school logos? The current non-statutory guidance states:

“Schools should keep compulsory branded items to a minimum and avoid specifying expensive items of uniform.”

Does the Minister believe that goes far enough?

The Minister said on Second Reading that the Government

“will be engaging…with key stakeholders to understand their views as statutory guidance on uniform costs is drafted.”—[Official Report, 13 March 2020; Vol. 673, c. 586.]

Which key stakeholders will the Government engage with and when will this engagement take place? Will draft guidance be developed and published before the Bill completes its passage through the House of Commons? What will happen if schools do not comply with the new statutory guidance once it has been published? Can the Minister assure the Committee that guidance will be specific and clear, so that those that it applies to are left in no doubt about their obligations?

Schools play a vital part in local communities, and many already provide help and support to families to signpost them to agencies where they can get financial and practical support. Will the Minister ensure that the new guidance contains the requirement for schools to regularly make information available on local grants and other schemes available to help families with the cost of uniform?

Education (Guidance about Costs of School Uniforms) Bill

Nickie Aiken Excerpts

2nd reading & 2nd reading: House of Commons
Friday 13th March 2020 Commons Chamber

[Mike Amesbury]

I do; I concur completely with the hon. Gentleman. When I was at school and people did not have a uniform—as I said, it highlighted the haves and the have-nots—the fashions of the day were really bad, particularly if someone had a highlighted mullet or, in some cases, Day-Glo leg warmers.

I believe, as does the Minister, that school uniforms are a good thing if they are affordable and inclusive. They are one of the ways that schools can poverty-proof the school day. They make children equal and take away the pressures to have to wear the latest fashionable and often very expensive branded clothes and shoes. Yet, too many schools needlessly apply high prices to a multitude of branded items of uniform, including jumpers, blazers, ties, hats, PE bags, coats and even drama socks.

[Nickie Aiken (Cities of London and Westminster) (Con)]

Does the hon. Gentleman agree that the issue is also the quality of the uniform? I speak from experience as the mother of two teenagers. One attends a girls’ comprehensive just down the road. I bought her blazer when she was going into year 7. She is now in year 11 and about to leave the statutory part of school and she is still in that blazer. It has been excellent quality.

My son, who is in year 9, is now on his fourth blazer because the quality has not been the same. He is in a different school. I absolutely support this Bill, but it must be about quality and ensuring that parents do not have to keep buying uniform. Obviously, children have growth spurts, but the quality of the uniform should be as good as we would expect.

[Mike Amesbury]

I do not disagree about quality, but we should also think about choice and affordability, and that is the key thing that this Bill addresses.

One parent wrote to me about a particular school that demands a different uniform for each house group. The march towards “if a child wears it, brand it with an embroidered logo” must end, to drive down costs and make uniforms genuinely inclusive.