A THIRD OF secondary students and a fifth of primary students avoid or refuse to go to school at least once a month, according to a new report by Barnardos. 

The children’s charity surveyed over 700 parents in July about their children returning to or starting school this month. 

Some 52% of primary school parents and 42% of secondary school parents said the main reason for refusal was anxiety.  

“Over the past few years across our services, we have seen a significant increase in the number of children we support having problems around school anxiety and school avoidance,” the Barnardos report said.

“Staff have reported an increase in anxiety and mental health issues generally for children and young people.”

Over a quarter (28%) of primary and 37% of secondary school parents said that school refusal got worse over the last year. 

Some 60% of primary and 70% of secondary school parents said their children had some form of concern or worry about going back to school.

For primary school parents, 30% said their child had worries in relation to friendships, 26% around struggles with class work, 12% worries about bullying and 18% difficulties with routines.

For secondary school parents, 31% identified friendships, 33% struggles with class work, 18% bullying and 25% difficulties with routines.

Almost half (46%) of parents said their children missed school for non-health/medical reasons last year once or twice, 14% three to five times and 11% of primary and 13% of secondary school parents said more than five times. Over half (55%) said the reason for doing so was holidays.

Some 40% of all parents completing the survey said their child had some form of special educational need.

More than half of primary (56%) and two thirds of secondary (63%) school parents with children who have special educational needs said their child only had some or none of the supports they need to engage fully in school.

For those waiting for an assessment, 44% of primary and 59% of secondary said they had been waiting for more than one year. For those who had been assessed, 51% said they had been waiting for more than a year for actual support.

Nearly one in five (18%) primary school parents said they thought their child was insufficiently prepared when transitioning into primary school, with almost a third (31%) of secondary school parents said they thought the same about their children starting secondary school.

“Increased non-attendance and difficulties engaging due to a lack of supports presents immediate risks in terms of wellbeing and educational attainment as well as reducing future opportunities,”  Barnardos national policy manager Stephen Moffatt said.

“It is a concern that vulnerable children and those living in disadvantaged communities are more likely to experience the issues outlined above.”

He said Barnardos frequently work with children who are struggling with school refusal, often related to increased anxiety and parental adversities such as poor parental mental health, domestic violence or addiction.

“A significant proportion of families we work with report difficulties accessing the necessary assessments and supports for their children to help them engage fully with education.”

The charity is calling on the government to increase access to educational needs assessments and increase funding for community organisations to support children experiencing disadvantage and enable them to attend and engage in school.

It also called for the continued sharing and implementation of best practice between schools on school avoidance and the national roll-out of Anseo, an actionable tool kit for school attendance.