Thousands of pupils missing from school and authorities don’t know where they are
Thousands of children have vanished from school with authorities often having no idea where they are, according to figures seen by Sky News.
On a single day in spring this year, local authorities in England reported an estimated 24,700 children as missing education – a worrying snapshot of the crisis facing schools.
They are categorised as Children Missing Education (CME), and include any child of school age not in school or receiving an education anywhere else.
Last year a staggering 94,900 children went missing at some point during the 2021/22 academic year.
Often, they are youngsters who have moved on from one area to another and they have not been enrolled into a new school.
By law, councils have to take “all reasonable steps” to find these children, but many remain missing for long periods.
Sky News can reveal that the number of council staff in England whose job it is to monitor school absences has been cut by nearly half in the past decade, making it harder for a lot of councils to track children down.
In 2013, there were 751 education welfare officers, or their equivalent, compared with just 402 this year – a cut of 46%.
That has put huge strain on councils to keep an eye on missing school children.
Read more: Inside a pupil welfare unit where a small team tries to track down missing children
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A spokesperson for the Local Government Association told Sky News: “Funding pressures faced by councils over the last 10 years have impacted on the number of roles councils are able to provide.
“We have long raised with government that councils lack the powers to ensure that children who are missing school don’t slip through the net.
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Why are children missing school?
“Under the current arrangements, children not in school are invisible to councils and the services that keep them safe. This is why it is vital the government legislates for a register of children who are not in school, combined with powers for councils to meet face-to-face with children.”
In response the Department for Education said: “The government is committed to ensuring that all children, especially the most vulnerable in our society, are safe and have access to an excellent education.
“We are continuing to work with local authorities to improve support for children missing education which includes their voluntary registers of children not in school.
“We estimate nationally there are currently more than 1,500 FTE local authority attendance staff and remain committed to introducing a statutory system so that no child falls through the cracks.”
The number of children missing significant amounts of school has risen sharply since the pandemic and is now regarded as a national crisis.
Read more:
An urgent national crisis: The number of children missing school soars
The ‘ghost children’: Thousands are missing school – and COVID made the problem worse
More than 1.7 million schoolchildren are missing from class more than 10% of the time, the equivalent of a morning a week. That has gone up by 108% since COVID.
And more than 125,000 children are spending more time out of school than in – double since the pandemic.
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Thousands of school children missing
The government has set up so-called attendance “hubs” in some of the areas with the highest absence rates.
It has also introduced attendance “mentors” to help support families and schools get children back into class.
UK
Philip Young appears in Swindon court charged with 56 sexual offences against ex-wife – as five others also charged
A man has appeared in court charged with drugging and raping his ex-wife over a 13-year period.
Philip Young, 49, formerly of Swindon, has been charged with 56 offences, including multiple counts of rape, against Joanne Young.
He is also charged with administering a substance to allow sexual activity, as well as voyeurism, possession of indecent images of children and possession of extreme images.
Young appeared at Swindon Magistrates’ Court this morning and spoke only to confirm his name and address.
He declined to enter a plea and was remanded in custody until the next hearing at Swindon Crown Court on 23 January.
The alleged offences took place between 2010 and 2023.
Philip Young was remanded in custody
The 49-year-old was taken to court in Swindon on Tuesday morning
Five other men have also been charged with sexual offences against Ms Young. The 48-year-old has waived her legal right to anonymity.
The full list of charges against Philip Young are:
- 11 counts of rape
- seven counts of sexual assault by penetration
- four counts of sexual touching
- 11 counts of administering a substance with intent to stupefy/overpower to allow sexual activity
- 13 counts of voyeurism specific to videos
- Voyeurism on at least 200 other occasions
- Possession of Indecent Images of Children:
Category A – 139
Category B – 68
Category C – 23
Prohibited – 3
Extreme – 82 (with one count each for four types: rape, animals, death, gore)
Breaching S1 of the Obscene Publications Act 1959 on at least 500 occasions
The other men appeared at the same court later on and were released on conditional bail.
They are: Norman Macksoni, 47, of Sharnbrook, Bedfordshire. He is a black British national and has been charged with one count of rape and possession of extreme images.
Dean Hamilton, 47, of no fixed abode. He is a white British national and has been charged with one count of rape and sexual assault by penetration and two counts of sexual touching.
Court artist sketch of Philip Young (right) appearing at Swindon Magistrates’ Court. Pic: Elizabeth Cook/PA
Conner Sanderson Doyle, 31, of Swindon. He is a white British national and has been charged with sexual assault by penetration and sexual touching
Richard Wilkins, 61, of Swindon. He is a white British national and has been charged with one count of rape and sexual touching
Mohammed Hassan, 37, of Swindon. He is a British Asian and has been charged with sexual touching.
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