Part of 1. 1. Questions to the Cabinet Secretary for Education – in the Senedd at 1:31 pm on 8 February 2017.
Thank you, Angela, for raising that point. As you said, both of us would agree that the best thing that we can do for our children’s education is ensure that they attend school on a regular basis. And there’s a direct correlation between regular attendance at schools and outcomes, although, sometimes, it is absolutely necessary for a child to stay at home if they are unwell. And we would not expect those children, or the parents of those children, to be treated in a way that made them feel alienated from school. This is an area that has not been raised with me previously, so I will commit to you this afternoon to have a look at that guidance, and to ask officials whether there is anything more that we can do to supply advice to schools about how they manage the absence of children who are genuinely unwell.