Teachernet, School attendance and exclusions sweeps

School attendance and exclusion sweeps

Student non-attendance, or truancy, is an issue that's grappled with by schools all over the world.

School attendance and exclusion sweeps aim to tackle non-attendance and enforce parents' responsibility for their children's whereabouts during the first five days of exclusion. School attendance and exclusion sweeps are carried out, during normal school hours, by partnerships of police officers and education welfare officers (EWOs).

Under the Crime and Disorder Act 1998, the police have powers to pick up (but not arrest) children who are registered at a school and who are absent without permission and take them to a designated area or, sometimes, back to school. Generally this power will be used through occasional 'sweeps' where police and EWOs join forces for a day and target particular areas, for example in shopping centres.

The DCSF has ceased to coordinate and collect data for school attendance and exclusion sweeps (formerly known as truancy sweeps). The autumn 2006 data collections are the final data published by the Department. However, LAs are expected to continue to raise awareness of the importance of school attendance. They should continue to plan and run exclusion sweeps throughout the year, organising them for times which suit local needs and operational pressures.

Relationship between absence and attainment

Failing to attend school regularly can have a major impact on young people's education, their future and their life chances. Examination of data from 2005 shows a strong correlation between average absence levels in schools and their pupils' attainment:

90 per cent of pupils gain five or more good GCSE grades at schools with average absence of 7.5 days or fewer per pupil — but only 31.3 per cent at schools with average absence of more than 20 days per pupil
87.5 per cent of pupils reach Key Stage 2 Level 4 mathematics in schools where pupils average fewer than 7.5 days absence a year — but this drops to 62.1 per cent in schools where average absence is more than 15 days.

Research shows that young people who are absent from school without permission are most vulnerable to being drawn into crime and anti-social behaviour and more likely to be unemployed after leaving school. The 2004 Youth Crime Survey showed that 45 per cent of young people in mainstream education who have committed an offence say they have been absent from school without their schools' approval. It also showed that 62 percent of 10— to 16-year-olds who have committed criminal or anti-social behaviour have also had periods of unauthorised absence.

Guidance and data

School attendance and exclusions sweeps: Effective practice and advice
This supersedes Truancy sweep effective practice and advice and is for LAs and others involved in attendance and exclusion sweeps.

Data from the previous sweeps show that, of 125 743 pupils stopped, 41 per cent of them were truanting and 38 per cent of those truants were with an adult. A breakdown of this data can be found at the links below. (All data is shown by Government Office Region.)

NFER national findings on truancy sweeps: Evaluation of truancy sweep follow-ups
A summary of approaches made by seven LAs.

Crime and Disorder Act: Police power to remove truants
Under Section 16 of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 (as amended), chief police officers can authorise their constables to remove truants from a public place. This document outlines the original Section 16 powers.

Children's right to education: Guidance on the legal measures available to secure regular school attendance
Information on the measures that are available under the law for ensuring regular school attendance in England, issued in January 2008.

Last updated: 27 August 2009