By Vivienne Russell
17 August 2010
Local authorities do not know how many children in their area are missing from the education system, Ofsted has revealed.
The education watchdog surveyed 15 councils of different sizes in both urban and rural areas. It found that none were confident that they knew about all the children living in their area and were able to fulfil their duties to keep children safe.
The report, published today, identified several problems councils face regarding the whereabouts of child residents. Schools sometimes fail to follow procedures to inform local authorities that children have moved on. Problems are also compounded by the transient nature of some families and the difficulties authorities have in sharing information with each other.
Collaborating with local health services was found to be an effective way of keeping track of children, but only one-third of the councils surveyed systematically involved health services in identifying missing children.
Patrick Leeson, Ofsted’s director for education and care, warned that children who become lost to the system risk not only failing academically but are potentially vulnerable to physical and emotional harm.
He said: ‘It is of serious concern that some schools are not following agreed procedures and legal requirements for notifying their local authorities when pupils are excluded or take off the roll.’
Ofsted said a focus on school attendance was the best place way to ensure children do not drop out of the education system. Councils were also urged to pay careful attention to key educational transition points, such as the move from primary to secondary school, as well as closer working with health services.
