Truancy
Nearly half a million pupils miss school every day despite repeated government initiatives to curb truancy costing £885 million.
Although there are 40,000 more pupils attending school daily than in 1997, the National Audit Office reported that around one child in every thirteen is a serial truant.
Children who skip classes are less likely to achieve academically and are more likely to turn to crime. Of those most likely to play truant, most are white secondary school pupils in deprived areas, or travellers.
Party Response: Conservative
Tim Collins, shadow education secretary, said: "The money spent by the government on 'futile truancy initiatives' could have been better spent.
"The heroic amounts of money that have been wasted on futile truancy initiatives would have been far better spent on making our classrooms happy, challenging and secure places in which to educate children of all ages and abilities. Among 14-16 year olds, disengagement from mainstream education is the single most significant cause of truancy and low exam attainment that so often leads to low self-esteem and a drift into petty crime."
Party Response: Liberal Democrats
Phil Willis, Liberal Democrat education spokesman, said: "Seven years of tough government rhetoric and meaningless targets have done nothing to tackle the truancy epidemic in our schools.
"Every aspect of government policy in this area has failed. Threatening parents with prison and handing out fines have come to nothing.
"With so many of our young people missing out on vital education it is time to tackle the causes of truancy rather than focus on penalties.
"Teachers, pupils and parents deserve better: smaller class sizes that give teachers more time with each pupil, better flexibility between academic and vocational courses and reforming the curriculum so our young people see school as relevant."
Stakeholder Response: Professional Association of Teachers
Jean Gemmell,PAT general secretary, said: "Although it is encouraging that the overall rate of pupil absence from school has fallen since 1997, the number of pupils playing truant each day is still alarmingly high.
"We know that the government is taking action - such as 'truancy sweeps' - to tackle the problem, but more must be done. Schools and LEAs need more resources to be able to follow up cases of truancy.
"Children wandering the streets during school hours are an all too common sight. It is even more concerning that some are with their parents. It would be very interesting to know what proportion of 'truancy' could be described as 'condoned unauthorised absence', although such statistics may be hard to obtain.
"However, prevention is better than cure. Reducing truancy levels isn't just about catching truants. We need to reach hearts and minds and change the attitudes of truants and their parents. Children missing school are missing out on an enormous opportunity - a free education - and jeopardising their future chances in life.
"The government, local authorities, schools, parents and the wider community must work in partnership to ensure that pupils attend school regularly. Teachers need the support of parents. We need to encourage parents to foster in their children a greater respect for schools and a belief in the importance of education. The government too must look at and tackle the underlying causes of truancy."
Stakeholder Response: NASUWT
Chris Keates, NASUWT general secretary, said: "I fail to understand the hysteria surrounding this issue, considering the figures actually show a decline in overall absences from school. There is a hardcore minority of truanting pupils, which is a particularly difficult group to deal with. However, we welcome the emphasis on parental responsibility which is vital if we are to make further advances in tackling this issue."
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