Question to the Department for Education:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what action they take when Multi Academy Trusts remove significant numbers of pupils off the roll of their schools; and what data they collect on off-rolling.

The law is clear that a pupil can only be deleted from the admission register on the grounds prescribed in regulation 8 of the Education (Pupil Registration) (England) Regulations 2006 as amended. All schools must notify the local authority when a pupil’s name is to be deleted from the admission register under any of the grounds prescribed in regulation 8, as soon as the ground for removal is met and no later than the time at which the pupil’s name is removed from the register. This applies to multi academy trusts in the same way as it does to state maintained schools.

The department does not hold information centrally on the number of pupils taken off roll from any type of school. Local authorities have a duty to make arrangements to establish the identities of children of compulsory school age in their area who are not registered pupils at a school, and are not receiving suitable education otherwise.