Slough executive defends truancy statistics

There is a link between poverty and absenteeism across Britain

Schools with high rates of persistent absenteeism will be singled out for improvement by Slough Borough Council.

Director of children's services Claire Piper said two secondary schools and 15 primary schools would be targeted for improvement.

Slough primaries had among the worst levels of unauthorised absence (1.54%) in England last year while secondaries were among the best (0.73%).

Ms Piper said she did not know why there was such a disparity.

Swine flu

"We are targeting both primary and secondary schools," she said. "There are some secondary schools in Slough where the absenteeism rates are higher."

Ms Piper said that the main reason for absenteeism in Slough was due to illness.

Half of all absences from school in Slough in 2008/9 were caused by ill health.

Religious holidays, children acting as carers and negative attitudes of parents to schooling were other factors which led to increased levels of absenteeism.

"There is a variety of religious life here in Slough, and sometimes these holidays fall in term time," she said.

"Last year when we had swine flu, and swine flu was particularly prevalent in Slough, we've got a very much increased absence rate around illness."

Ms Piper said it was important to engage parents and persuade them their children's education was important.

"What I'd like to get over is a message to parents to say it is vital that your children to go to school unless they're not well enough to do so, because school is a really important place for them to be," she said.

"It equips them for later life, they learn a lot of social skills through school and by missing school regularly for reasons that aren't about illness, children miss out on a huge chunk of their education."