Almost 30,000 students absent from Midland schools on one day last month
Tens of thousands of pupils were absent from schools across the Black Country and Staffordshire on just one day in October, a snapshot Government survey reveals.
With falling attendance rates across England, but lowest in parts of the north, the Association of School and College Leaders is calling for the Government to provide more support and guidance to schools during the coronavirus crisis.
The Department for Education's survey of school attendance showed nearly 30,000 pupils were absent from schools across both regions.
In Wolverhampton, 4,918 pupils were absent from schools on October 15 – with an overall attendance rate of 88 per cent.
Of these, 52 per cent were absent from secondary schools, 44 per cent from primary schools and around four per cent from special schools.
Over in Dudley, 3,530 pupils were away from school on this date – with an overall attendance rate of 91 per cent.
Of these, 46 per cent were absent from secondary schools, 50 per cent from primary schools and around four per cent from special schools.
In Sandwell, a staggering 6,056 pupils were out of school on October 15. There was an overall attendance rate of 86 per cent.
A total of 44 per cent were away from secondary schools, 51 per cent from primary schools and around five per cent from special schools.
A total of 4,398 students were away from schools in Walsall on this date, with an attendance rate of 87 per cent.
Fifty-one per cent were absent from secondary schools, 45 per cent from primary schools and around four per cent from special schools.
And elsewhere in Staffordshire, 9,648 pupils were absent on October 15 – with an overall attendance rate of 90 per cent.
Of these, 61 per cent were off from secondary schools, 35 per cent from primary schools and around four per cent from special schools.
'Fairest'
The survey only looked at state-funded schools, of which not all responded, so it is likely even more pupils were off throughout the area.
The figures, which were placed in the House of Commons library following a written question from MP Margaret Greenwood, showed the total attendance rate across England was 89% – down from 90% a week earlier.
The DfE said up to 412,000 children did not attend school for Covid-19 related reasons, with the majority self-isolating due to potential contact with a case of coronavirus.
More than a fifth of schools said they had one or more pupils self-isolating who had been asked to do so due to potential contact with a case of coronavirus inside the school.
The average attendance in the West Midlands was one of the lowest in England on October 15.
A DfE spokeswoman said schools were expected to provide pupils with remote education when they were self-isolating and headteachers could decide how to use their school’s premium allocation funding to tackle the impact of lost teaching time on pupils.
She added: “Exams are the fairest way of judging a student’s performance, which is why they will go ahead next year, underpinned by contingency measures developed in partnership with the sector.
“Over the coming weeks we will jointly identify any risks to exams and the measures needed to address potential disruption, with fairness for students continuing to be our priority.”
