A shift in priorities that emphasises pupil wellbeing not just exam results could improve attendance

The reasons for poor attendance at English schools, high rates of psychological distress and illness among young people, and a rising number of pupils with special educational needs and disabilities (Send), are complicated. The pandemic and its after-effects, poverty and the many family difficulties it causes, are among them. Bridget Phillipson, the education secretary, has made no bones about her determination to get more pupils back into classrooms. But in a striking speech to the Confederation of School Trusts on Thursday, she made the case that schools are part of the problem as well as the solution.

Headteachers must abandon the “tunnel vision” that leads them to focus too heavily on exam results, and not enough on belonging, she argued. Citing her own childhood experience of supportive teachers, she called for a “profound reform in what we value”. Given what has gone before, this new emphasis on relationships could even be called a revolution. Raising academic standards and removing schools from local, democratic control were the twin themes of Conservative schools policy. This achieved some success, with the UK making progress in international rankings, particularly in maths. But marks are not the be-all and end-all, and Ms Phillipson’s message was that even if they have been removed from council control, into academy trusts, schools are the hearts of their communities.

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