A rise in Covid cases this autumn risks exacerbating the pupil absence crisis, headteachers’ leaders have warned.
Schools are reporting a rise in pupil and staff absence following the emergence of a new Covid variant, which has led to a spike in coronavirus cases this autumn, with hospital cases tripling since July, according to the UK Health Security Agency.
The uptick in cases comes as schools grapple with an ongoing attendance crisis first sparked by lockdown measures in response to the pandemic in 2020 and 2021.
The rise in cases is causing an “obvious and direct consequence” of increasing pupil absence, warned James Bowen, assistant general secretary of the NAHT school leaders’ union.
He told Tes that the union is “picking up reports of schools seeing an increase in Covid cases recently”.
“Although periods of absence are not as long as they were previously, they still obviously have an impact,” he added.
He said the union is also “hearing of some schools being affected by an increase in Covid-related staff absence in recent weeks”.
Julie McCulloch, director of policy at the Association of School and College Leaders, said the union is “concerned” about the incidence of suspected or confirmed Covid cases in schools and the “impact on pupil absence and the potential for more serious disruption if classes cannot be covered”.
However, she said the impact across the country is uneven, with some schools and colleges currently reporting minimal cases of illness among staff and pupils, while others are reporting that a number of staff are absent, “with some members of staff being very poorly”.
Ms McCulloch added: “The picture is complicated by the fact that Covid testing is not freely available, which means that it is often difficult to know whether or not illness is attributable to Covid.”
She also called for vaccinations to be offered to teachers and other school staff and for clearer guidance on how to respond to positive tests.
Covid absence monitoring
The rise in cases in schools as we head into the autumn term continues a trend seen since the start of the pandemic of an increased spread of the virus in colder months across all age groups.
However, the number of cases in England overall as of the end of last week was just a fraction at 1,156 compared to the 7,099 cases recorded in September 2022.
The Department for Education’s decision to tell schools to stop monitoring Covid-19-related pupil absences in April last year was branded “frustrating” and “contradictory” by leaders at the time.
The Commons Education Select Committee said in a report released today on an attendance crisis in schools that the DfE should launch a targeted public information campaign to guide parents on when children who are unwell should attend school and when they shouldn’t.
The importance of school attendance to “life chances” and the need for pupils to attend school if they display “mild symptoms” such as a “minor cough, runny nose or sore throat” was stressed in a joint letter sent to heads by medical leaders, including the chief medical officer, Professor Chris Whitty, earlier this month.
The letter aimed to “provide helpful information” to heads dealing with “some parents” who “feel less confident with assessing whether their child is well enough to be in school” following the pandemic. It also emphasised that “worry and mild or moderate anxiety, while sometimes difficult emotions, can be a normal part of growing up” and that “being in school can often help alleviate the underlying issues”.
A DfE spokesperson said that, although attendance rates since the pandemic have improved, the government “remains focused on ensuring no child falls through the cracks”.
They cited measures including the recent expansion of its attendance hubs and mentors programme, and “ensuring pupils get the right support with SEND and mental health, including through our SEND and AP Improvement Plan and by increasing the number of mental health support teams.”
