Clause 50 - Attendance targets
Education Bill
4:15 pm
Mr Ivan Lewis (Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Department for Education and Skills; Bury South, Labour)
One is always struck by the modesty of the hon. Member for Isle of Wight. I hate to think what John Smith might have been thinking.
The hon. Member for Harrogate and Knaresborough raised important issues. There is a often a direct relationship between the stresses and strains of living in difficult circumstances, whether they are due to family income, mental health problems or physical disability, and the hon. Gentleman is right to draw attention to the responsibilities of young children who care for sick or dependent parents. When considering school attendance, society does not give enough attention to the strain and pressure on young carers. Their contribution in caring for their relatives is not always conducive to their good health or to their best interests. We often talk in a negative way about young people, but those youngsters are fulfilling what they regard as their responsibility for someone they care for.
The hon. Gentleman may be reassured to know that the Government will report in September on the current in-depth research into the causes of truancy and absence. I will speak to the commissioning officials to ensure that special regard is paid to the role and responsibilities of young carers in that research. I hope that that will allay the hon. Gentleman's anxieties.
Clause 50 allows the Secretary of State to ask schools to consider the issue of authorised absences, which is as important and valid as that of unauthorised absences. As the hon. Gentleman said, a debate could be conducted on the subject of lengthy holidays during
school time; although they may be authorised, it does not make them right. Head teachers are sometimes under tremendous pressure to authorise such absences, even when they think that they are not in the interests of the class or the individual pupil.
The hon. Gentleman asked what the penalties would be for not meeting the targets. I reassure him that there will be no penalties as such but there will be a requirement, or expectation, that those schools will work closely with local education authorities to consider why they have difficulties in meeting their targets. They will be encouraged to ask questions about their procedures, to see whether they can improve their strategy on absence, and the processes that operate in the school. There will be no negative consequences for not meeting targets in that area, but if a school does not meet its targets that would identify issues that it should examine. We would expect the local education authority to support the school in considering and resolving such problems. On that note, I urge hon. Members to support the clause.
Question put and agreed to.
Clause 50 ordered to stand part of the Bill.
Clauses 51 to 53 ordered to stand part of the Bill.
Schedule 5 agreed to.