Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to improve school attendance (a) by students who are eligible for free school meals and from deprived areas and (b) generally.

The Department has a comprehensive strategy to drive a more consistent response from schools, trusts and Local Authorities to help keep children in school.

The Department has published new, stronger expectations of schools, trusts and Local Authorities to work together to improve attendance. Alongside this, the Department has deployed 10 expert Attendance Advisers to work with Local Authorities and trusts to review attendance practices and develop improvement plans.

The Department has established an improved, more timely flow of national pupil level attendance data. This will help schools, trusts and Local Authorities make better use of attendance data to identify those in need of support earlier, including those on free school meals (FSMs).

The Department’s Attendance Action Alliance of system leaders work to remove barriers to attendance, particularly for vulnerable children, and reduce absence through pledges.

The Department is piloting a mentor programme in Middlesborough that provides direct support to persistently and severely absent children, who are more likely to be eligible for FSMs. The Department is also offering intensive support to the most vulnerable through the Supporting Families and Virtual Schools Head extension programmes and those at risk in serious violence hotspots with our SAFE and Alternative Provision Taskforces. Alongside this, programmes such as Breakfast Clubs and the Holiday and Activities Food Programme stand to particularly support disadvantaged children’s attendance.

The Department is also working closely with schools, trusts, Local Authorities and other partners to address specific attendance issues identified in Priority Education Investment Areas through the local area needs funding.