Pepe Di’Iasio, General Secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, comments on the government’s expansion of attendance mentoring.
“School leaders are doing everything they can to improve attendance, but it remains a significant challenge and extra investment to tackle this issue is welcome and badly needed. Attendance mentoring can make a difference, particularly to pupils with mental health problems or special educational needs. However, this much-needed additional support should not be limited to children who happen to live in areas where this scheme is running. We need to build up a national network of support that means any child that is struggling to attend school, in whatever part of the country, is able to get the help they need to return to classroom as quickly as possible.”