Commenting on the latest Welsh Government statistics on school absenteeism, Natasha Asghar MS, Welsh Conservative Shadow Cabinet Secretary for Education, expressed her concern over the Labour Government’s continued failure to make significant progress in tackling absenteeism.
While attendance has increased marginally compared to last year, Natasha criticised the slow pace of progress and underscored the shocking statistic that the number of persistently absent pupils has doubled since before the pandemic. She also highlighted the widening attendance gap between pupils eligible for free school meals and their peers.
Commenting, Natasha Asghar MS, said:
“The number of pupils persistently absent from school has doubled since before the pandemic, with over 1 in 4 disadvantaged pupils now falling into this category. Labour’s inability to tackle this crisis is leaving thousands of children behind.
“Labour’s failure to address inequalities in education has further widened the gap for the most disadvantaged children, with pupils eligible for free school meals continuing to fall behind, with little progress being made to close this glaring divide.
“Labour’s record in education is dreadful and absenteeism is just one of many areas they cannot get right, Wales needs a change and only the Welsh Conservatives can be that change and fix Wales.”
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