Agenda item

Report of the Director of Education Commissioning and Inclusion and Chief Executive Officer, Camden Learning.

This report discusses the prevalence of persistent absence in Camden’s schools and an overview of our work to ensure education is inclusive for all children. Overall attendance in Camden schools in 2023/24 has improved from previous years but remains below pre-pandemic levels and the proportion of pupils considered persistently absent is higher than comparable national rates. This report details our current work to improve attendance and inclusion of students with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) and an overview of existing alternative provision and support for children known to social care, including looked after children.

Consideration was given to the report of the Director of Education Commissioning and Inclusion and the Chief Executive Officer, Camden Learning.

Vikram Hansrani, Director of Education Commissioning and Inclusion, and Chris Roberts, Senior Adviser for Safeguarding & Inclusion at Camden Learning, introduced and summarised the report which provided information on the prevalence of persistent absence in Camden’s schools and provided an overview of work to ensure education was inclusive for all children, including alternative provision.

The Chair thanked officers for the report and invited questions and comments from the Committee. The following was discussed:

·       In relation to section 3.2, a Member asked if the Council knew who were the 1,505 persistently absent primary school children and how they were supported. In response, it was confirmed that Camden Council with Camden Learning was working with schools to help planning and address the issue. This work was also part of the Youth Mission to tackle the issue. It was noted the secondary school level of persistent absence was higher at nearly 2,000 and it was a system wide issue. Where there were more severe cases of persistent absences, children would be referred to other support services, instead of other milder targeted approaches within schools for less severe cases such as resetting messaging.

·       A Member said that there should be empathy shown to children with SEND in mainstream settings who were struggling, also raising there may be absences related to medical appointments which were marked against them. In response, officers said this report referred to current challenges and included data for special schools, where SEND had a high level of persistent absence. It was noted that often children could miss a whole day for an appointment and Camden would like to improve messaging to encourage families to attend school for a half-day on appointment days where possible, or that families try to request appointments out of school hours where possible.

·       Members asked for more detailed information to be included in a future report about the background, outcomes, and destinations of children in alternative provision. In response, officers noted that there was a current focus on integrating the SEND strategy with alternative provision, aligning with the 2022 Green Paper and the associated SEND Improvement Plan from the Department for Education (DfE). Officers would ensure all alternative provision data was captured in the SEND Strategy progress report in February 2025.

·       A Co-opted Member said this report was a good start, however it was lacking information in the following areas: it was hard to identify when, why and which groups of children were not at school; the variations between genders or variations between schools was unclear; the report was vague on which initiatives were successful or why certain interventions had been chosen; CAMHS (Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services) was not referenced in the report; in relation to section 4.5, there was no mention of targeted interventions for children at higher risk; and there was little information on the impact of the interventions which had been chosen. Officers noted that further detailed analysis would be included in the SEND Strategy progress report in February 2025. They highlighted that challenges varied between cohorts and between schools, with tailored approaches needed to address disproportionate impacts. Current work included evaluating mental health support teams, family hubs, and early help system improvements, alongside strategies such as targeted text messaging for attendance and fostering welcoming school environments. Officers noted that the report was supported by more detailed analysis, which would be reviewed to determine what could be shared more widely. Officers acknowledged that persistent absence remained a nationwide challenge post-pandemic, with causes and effective solutions still being tested. Research and ongoing efforts were expected to provide clearer insights by Autumn 2025.

·       Members raised concerns about a growing cohort of students who had become disengaged from education post-pandemic. They noted that while schools had always managed absences due to illness, a new dynamic had emerged where relationships between families and schools had more regularly broken down entirely. These students remained on school rolls but did not attend, presenting a worrying issue as they faced significant challenges in adulthood when entering the workforce without qualifications. Members highlighted the pressure placed on schools, who often invested significant time and resources trying to re-establish contact with families, and asked what guidance was being provided to headteachers to address these complex cases. In response, officers noted there was no clear solution at present, but there was ongoing work with the DfE and alignment with Ofsted’s focus on inclusion, the curriculum, and assessment. While progress was being made, the trajectory remained positive but uncertain, but Camden was looking to utilise its strong schools ecosystem. The importance of rebuilding relationships and trust with families was emphasised as critical to addressing these challenges and there was engagement with the Parent Carer Forum for SEND in fostering trust and dialogue between families, schools, and other stakeholders. Officers acknowledged the ambiguity in some aspects of the current educational offer and greater clarity was needed.

·       Members raised concerns about the long-term impact on students who struggled with basic literacy skills and about parents understanding the future consequences of these challenges. In response, officers acknowledged the concern, noting that the Free School Meal cohort was facing additional challenges that could widen the long-term disadvantage gap. They explained that while significant progress had been made over the past 15-20 years to narrow this gap, attendance issues were now contributing to a reversal of that progress.

·       In response to section 5.5, a Member noted that it was hard to provide therapists due to the shortage in the profession, and in response to section 6.3, they said targeted outreach work was not possible when Robson House was at full capacity. Officers stated that the alternative provisions challenges were regional and national. Camden aligned with external national reports, adopting a 3-tier approach to alternative provision that focused on intervention. Officers confirmed that a review of Robson House commissioning was underway to ensure there were adequate resources for effective interventions, while also defining the role of short-term provisions like Robson House. Camden had strength in retaining teaching and support staff, despite national funding challenges, which had enabled effective intervention modelling in schools.

·       Members asked why persistent absence rates in Camden were higher than the London and national averages. Officers explained that prior to the pandemic Camden still had lower rates compared to similar boroughs and suggested that demographic factors, such as the proportion of children attending state schools, might have influenced the figures for mainstream schools. Further work was needed to explore whether more children had moved to the independent sector, and it was important to considering both demographic factors and variations in school practices.

·       Members requested a more detailed report on persistent absence, which included information about the types of measures and case studies being used to address the issue. Members also requested the report respond to questions raised in the discussion. A Member also proposed inviting schools representatives to share their experience in tackling attendance issues, particularly for students with SEND.  In response, it was confirmed that there would be a discussion outside of the meeting on how best to present the information at this time to the Committee, whether that be to the January 2025 meeting of a briefing note to members. In addition, it was confirmed that there would be more data included in the February 2025 SEND Strategy progress report. Officers stated that it would be Autumn 2025 when evidence and impacts from the intervention work could be reported to Committee.

·       The Chair stated they were looking into arranging trips for the Committee to visit provisions across the borough.

RESOLVED - 

THAT the Committee comment on and note the report.