Commenting on the latest school attendance data, now
incorporating local authority breakdowns for the first time,
Kevin Courtney, Joint General Secretary of the National
Education Union, said:
“These attendance figures that have been hidden from the public
for so long show just what a profound impact coronavirus has had
on schooling in many areas.
“For example, Hull has had less than 60% attendance in their
secondary schools for much of the last half term. Rochdale
averaged just 70% attendance in their secondary schools over the
whole term.
“Bury, Rotherham and Gateshead had an average of more than 90% of
their secondary schools with pupils self-isolating.
“In these circumstances, we cannot see how it is fair on these
pupils to sit exams under the same conditions as pupils in York
or West Sussex where secondary attendance averaged 90% over the
term.”
“The interests of an individual child are of course to be in
school, but you have to view this with a wider canvas than that -
which has been
failing to do in his recourse to legal threats. Schools are
deeply concerned that community spread is being generated by
schools, which are now widely accepted to be major centres of
transmission, particularly in secondaries. The most recent ONS
data shows that the only other age group seeing a case count
other than school-age children, is in the age group which covers
most parents (35-49).
“The NEU commends school leaders and councils for taking an
ethical stance, in a volatile situation where public health is
the prime concern, especially so close to Christmas. It is their
standing up for pupils, staff and the community which mattered
most in a time of crisis. By contrast, the Secretary of State and
his colleagues have failed utterly in their responsibility to
keep schools safe.”
ENDS
Editor’s Note
ONS comment, 11 December: https://neu.org.uk/press-releases/ons-figures
Sources:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/3ud5spunlis0uwg/Attendance_20201215.xlsx?dl=0
drawn from Table 1C- Weekly attendance in state schools during
the COVID outbreak at local authority level
https://www.dropbox.com/s/6ndwsaxkkitnuk9/Schools%20with%20self%20isolating%2020201215.xlsx?dl=0
drawn from Table 1C- Weekly attendance in state schools during
the COVID outbreak at local authority level
