Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to reduce pupil absenteeism in Fylde constituency.

Tackling absence is at the heart of the government’s mission to break down barriers to opportunity in all areas. If children are not in school, it does not matter how effective or well-supported teaching and learning is, they will not benefit. Thanks to the hard work of parents and teachers there has been progress, but levels of absenteeism remain higher than they were prior to the pandemic.

The department has set out clear expectations of all local authorities and schools in the ‘Working together to improve school attendance’ guidance, which was made statutory in August 2024. This guidance can be found at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/66bf300da44f1c4c23e5bd1b/Working_together_to_improve_school_attendance_-_August_2024.pdf.

The guidance promotes a 'support first' approach and sets out clear expectations on how schools, trusts, local authorities and wider services should work together and with families to address attendance barriers and provide the right support, including where a pupil is not attending due to special educational needs.

The department has also established 31 attendance hubs that offer their support to around 2000 schools, including secondaries. Hubs are established and led by senior leaders in schools with strong attendance practice. The meetings led by these hubs are intended to give senior leaders in other schools a forum to discuss and share effective attendance practice. Whilst we do not hold numbers at a constituency level, 23 schools in Blackpool, Lancashire and surrounding areas have been offered the support of an attendance hub.

Last year, the department published an attendance toolkit, bringing together effective practice from across the hubs. This toolkit gives schools practical advice on how to diagnose and target their attendance problem and how to effectively implement great practice.

We are also strengthening our tools for faster and more effective school improvement by launching the new regional improvement for standards and excellence (RISE) teams. Supported by over £20 million, these teams will offer both mandatory targeted intervention for schools identified by Ofsted as needing to improve and a universal service, acting as a catalyst for a self-improving system for all schools. The RISE teams are now beginning work with the first group of schools eligible for the targeted, bespoke service, including support for attendance as necessary. Improving school attendance is a national priority for RISE teams.

Alongside hub lead schools and RISE advisers, the department is delivering a programme of regional attendance conferences across England, giving secondary school leaders and senior attendance champions the chance to hear directly from hubs and other practitioners on improving attendance. The conference in the North West will be held on 24 March.

Every state school in England, including in Fylde constituency, is required to share their attendance data with the department. Schools can access this data through a secure, interactive dashboard, allowing them to target attendance interventions more effectively.