Commenting on the school attendance statistics published
today by the Department for Education, Geoff Barton, General
Secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, said:
“Any hope that the Christmas holidays would act as a firebreak
for schools and colleges have evaporated, with the latest set of
statistics showing an increase in the number of pupils absent
because of Covid-19 and, more significantly, the number of staff
away from the classroom having risen still further.
“Despite the fact most secondary schools were phasing the return
of students for testing to take place there is still huge
disruption, with both confirmed and suspected coronavirus cases
having risen since the last data was published in mid-December.
The challenges posed by having so many staff absent will continue
to put schools and colleges under severe pressure.
“The costs of bringing in the supply staff needed to maintain
learning is crippling for schools and colleges and the government
needs to step in to help, as well as providing more support on
ventilation.
“There have been more positive noises about rates of infection
beginning to plateau in recent days and we can only hope this is
reflected soon in the attendance figures. Until then, schools and
colleges will continue to work incredibly hard to maintain
education as best they can in the most trying of circumstances.”
