Attendance and behaviour in school are key issues for teachers and government. Charlie Taylor, the government’s ‘behaviour tsar’, is calling for child benefit to be docked from parents whose children are persistent truants and the Labour frontbench agrees that fines should be part of the mix when tackling absence from school. However, the increasing stigmatisation of children in this way risks further marginalising vulnerable groups who need support, not sanctions.
At Family Action we know from experience that going beyond the school gate and really looking at the reasons why pupils are missing school is the only way to improve education for the most disadvantaged pupils. We work with an often-hidden group of young people in schools as part of our work supporting families.
A young carer is a young person between the age of 5-24 who cares for a parent or sibling with a physical or mental health difficulty or a parent with substance misuse. Young carers often get a raw deal from schools unaware or uninterested in their caring roles. But with research suggesting one in 12 young people in secondary school could have a caring role this issue needs to be tackled. When we asked our young carers what they wanted us to campaign about, raising awareness of caring roles among teachers and pupils was their top priority. That’s why we’ve launched a new report Be Bothered! Make Education Count for Young Carers investigating this issue. The report lifts the lid on some of the problems that young carers and their parents face as well as offering solutions to schools, local authorities and government.
Poor attendance, behaviour and lack of concentration are all key problems young carers experience. These not only affect attainment and the aspirations of young carers but impact on their ability to enjoy school and build positive relationships with teachers and other pupils. Improving support and dealing with these issues is good for schools as well as young people and their parents.
Labour should champion open school cultures celebrating difference and support. Schools cannot be islands isolated from their communities. This is even more important with the rise of academies and free schools. Schools need to be open to working with other agencies, making time and resources available to meet the needs of vulnerable pupils.
Schools could use the pupil premium data available to them to reach out to disadvantaged families proactively, identifying in partnership with parents any extra support needs that they or their children may need to ensure that tailored support is available to improve outcomes for young carers and other vulnerable pupils. The frontbench team could play a role in pushing for an amendment to the children and families bill to place a duty on schools and colleges to identify and assess vulnerable pupils.
There are opportunities here too for Labour teachers, councillors and governors to be championing young carers in schools, leading work to develop policies and support locally. Our research shows that just 38 per cent of local authorities in England have young carers strategies.
If Labour is serious about closing the attainment gap we need to see the party taking a lead on championing improvements in support for the most vulnerable pupils.
Caring roles don’t stop at the school gate – it’s time for Labour to be bothered about creating schools that reach out into the community with services and support which benefit all pupils whilst making sure the most disadvantaged are not left behind. Labour should prioritise making education count for vulnerable pupils including young carers.
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Anthony McCaul is the senior media and campaigns officer for the charity Family Action. You can read a copy of the Be Bothered! report here.