{"id":62039,"date":"2022-10-10T07:14:03","date_gmt":"2022-10-10T07:14:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tahrir2day.com\/news\/2022\/10\/10\/school-absentees-storing-up-problems-for-decades-halfon\/"},"modified":"2022-10-10T07:14:03","modified_gmt":"2022-10-10T07:14:03","slug":"school-absentees-storing-up-problems-for-decades-halfon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tahrir2day.com\/news\/2022\/10\/10\/school-absentees-storing-up-problems-for-decades-halfon\/","title":{"rendered":"School absentees storing up problems for decades – Halfon"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Absence from school will spell trouble for young people for “decades to come,” a senior MP has warned.<\/b><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Education Select Committee chair Robert Halfon said more than 100,000 “ghost children” have not returned to school since the coronavirus pandemic began.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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In March, the committee warned of an “epidemic” of inequality, exacerbated by the learning loss due to Covid.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The government has passed a new school law aimed at increasing school attendance.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Mr Halfon, the Conservative MP for Harlow in Essex, told BBC Politics East: “I describe them as the four horsemen of the education apocalypse galloping towards young people – lost educational qualifications, damage to their mental health, damage to their protection and loss of life chances.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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“This will not only accompany us for a few weeks or months, but possibly for the coming decades.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Figures for the east of England show that 200,803 pupils were permanently absent [10% of the time]while 11,313 were severely absent [off 50% of the time].<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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The latest nationwide figures show school attendance was 80.8% on July 21, compared to 92.2% in March.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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However, some parents argue that school is not always where children are brought up, while others say more help is needed to support students’ individual needs. <\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Anna Allen, from Essex, said her son suffered from mental health problems at school and she had concerns about the bill.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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“It’s this focus on crime and punishment rather than raising children. Kids will do well if they can,” she said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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“It’s not that the kids aren’t going to school, it’s that for whatever reason they can’t, and the reasons need to be investigated.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Amanda Rolph, from Norfolk, told the BBC she decided to homeschool her son after he struggled at school.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\u201cIt became clear that he was not well. At night he was very anxious. He always asked: ‘Is there school tomorrow?’ He could never relax, not even on weekends,” she said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Square Peg parent group director Ellie Costello said she’s concerned schools are ignoring valid mental health reasons why children can’t go to school and punishing parents too quickly.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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She said some parents have children who are occasionally unable to go to school, while others have children who are home educated.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Square Peg, in its submission to the government on the Schools Act, said: “Criminal sanctions such as fines and threats of imprisonment have no place in the state’s duty to provide education.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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A government blog on the bill said: “We are introducing legislation to enact new statutory guidance on attendance, including requiring every school to publish a clear attendance policy to improve support.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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You can see more of this story on Sunday 9 October at 10am BST on Politics East on BBC One, although it is also available on <\/i>BBC iPlayer thereafter.<\/i><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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Find BBC News: East of England <\/i>Facebook, <\/i>Instagram and <\/i>Twitter<\/a>. If you have a story suggestion, please email <\/i>eastofenglandnews@bbc.co.uk<\/p>\n<\/div>\n