One in five pupils were “persistently” absent from school this year, with an attendance gap between poorer children and their better off peers widening.
Department for Education data today reveals how sky-high post-pandemic absence rates are not improving.
In total, 22.3 per cent of pupils missed more than one in 10 sessions in the 2022-23 academic year. This has barely improved from the 22.5 per cent rate in 2021-22, despite huge focus from schools and politicians.
Before the pandemic, the persistent absence rate sat at between 10 to 13 per cent.
