About one in six secondary school pupils in Wales are persistently absent from school, new figures have shown.
Welsh government data suggests 16.3% of pupils aged 11-15 fell into this category in 2022-23, three times higher than pre-pandemic levels.
For pupils eligible for free school meals, this figure was more than twice as high at 35.7%.
Education Minister Jeremy Miles said a "task force" would "look in depth" into the reasons behind non-attendance.
Persistent absence is defined as missing 20% of the most common required sessions.
Overall levels of absence, based on missed half-day sessions, have also doubled.
