MORE than a third of Glasgow’s primary pupils missed almost a month of school last year, new figures reveal.
The shocking statistics show around three-quarters of a million – a staggering 738,625 - school days were lost to absence in 2022/23 across the city's primaries.
The city council is launching a bold campaign to tackle the “worrying” decline.
The Attendance Matters Every Day initiative, which starts on Monday (March 3), aims to urge parents and carers to send children to school every single day, by focusing on the “critical importance” of regular attendance for their child's future.
The campaign comes at a time when school attendance rates in Glasgow, and nationally, are on a worrying downward trend post-pandemic and Covid lockdowns.
In 2013-2014, primary school attendance was at 94%, but, by 2023-2024, it had dropped to 90.4% and the lowest in years.
More than a third of Glasgow’s primary pupils missed more than 10% of school last year, equating to 13,721 children each missing nearly a month (19 days) of learning .
Recent research shows that even a few missed days here and there can impact a child's holistic development and future prospects, and any time missed is almost impossible to recover from.
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Some families are keeping their children off school for non-illness reasons, including holidays, and the pandemic has led to a misconception that daily attendance is not essential for a child’s academic, social and emotional growth.
A small-scale targeted survey conducted by Glasgow City Council recently showed that 33% of parents and carers have taken their children out of school during term time for holidays and family occasions, and 24% missed school for reasons other than illness or appointments.
In a bid to establish good habits from the outset and targeting the stage before the crucial transition into secondary education, the campaign is directed at parents and carers of primary school pupils.
Douglas Hutchison, Glasgow City Council’s director of education services said the Attendance Matters Every Day campaign is looking to “change the narrative” around going to school every day.
He said: “There is no denying the facts that, citywide, attendance rates are not where we want them to be. Our schools already do a huge amount of work in their learning communities to support improving attendance.
“This campaign sharpens the focus and highlights the impact and shines a light on why going to school every day makes a difference to a child.”
He added: “Ultimately, we want to get more children into school more often, to help them reach their potential.
“We know that for some of our families there are many obstacles and challenges that lead to non-attendance.
“If parents and carers need additional support our schools are here to help.”
The campaign aims to highlighting the value to a child of going to school every day, beyond traditional learning of reading, writing, and maths. Instead, it also looks at life skills, friendships, and future opportunities which are also nurtured and developed by going to school every day.
Key messages include the fact that going to school every day “opens doors to better opportunities in the future, helps children develop essential life skills, and fosters friendships that can last a lifetime.”
While the council is making unauthorised attendance rates a priority for this year, Mr Hutchison added that the campaign “complements the immense amount of work happening to tackle the underlying problems that affect absence including, additional support needs, mental health and poverty.”
He said: “This is the first phase of a longer-term campaign that will go on to look at secondary school attendance rates later in the year.
“The campaign will be run over six weeks on radio, social media and through schools to raise awareness with our families, children and young people.”
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