As students across England prepare to return to classrooms for the start of the new academic year, the government is sounding the alarm over a worrying trend: persistent absenteeism and rising behavioural issues are threatening children’s educational prospects. Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson has issued a stark call to action, urging parents, schools, and government bodies to work together to reverse these patterns and ensure every child is present, engaged, and ready to learn from day one.
On August 31, 2025, Phillipson addressed the nation, emphasizing the importance of immediate and collective action. “I am calling on parents, schools and families to join us in playing their part to get children in class and ready to learn for the start of the new school term,” she declared, as reported by the Press Association. Her warning was clear: missing even the first few days of term can set the stage for longer absences, which in turn can severely damage children’s life chances and exam success. “We all need to do more, and when it comes to getting kids in and behaving – this includes mums, dads and carers too.”
This renewed focus comes as the Department for Education (DfE) rolls out a series of measures designed to tackle the attendance and behaviour crisis head-on. Among the most significant is a new programme that will see around 600,000 pupils in 800 schools gain access to support from school leaders who have already demonstrated success in improving attendance and behaviour. The initiative, part of the government’s broader “Plan for Change,” is expected to eventually support 5,000 schools, with intensive help earmarked for 500 of the most challenged institutions.
Phillipson’s message was not just one of challenge, but of progress. “We have already made progress with five million more days in school this year, and are backing parents and supporting schools through our Plan for Change,” she stated. However, the Education Secretary stressed that the effort must be shared, with everyone—including parents—playing an active role in ensuring children are in school and behaving appropriately.
But the statistics paint a sobering picture. According to government figures released in July 2025, suspensions and exclusions hit a record high during the 2023/24 school year. The overall absence rate, while slightly lower in autumn 2024/25 than the previous year, still saw the number of pupils classified as severely absent rise from 142,000 to 148,000. That’s not just a number—it’s tens of thousands of children missing out on the education that could shape their futures.
Phillipson’s concerns are particularly acute when it comes to white working-class children. Writing in the Sunday Telegraph, she highlighted that “for far too many white working-class children, opportunity is out of reach,” citing data showing that one in ten white children on free school meals were suspended last year, with suspension rates five times higher than their peers. “These children are swimming upstream against a staggering, entrenched class divide that sees them disproportionately kicked out of education or not attending in the first place,” she wrote. The Education Secretary insisted, “it is only this Government that has the courage to upend a system that has resolutely failed white working-class children.”
The Department for Education’s upcoming white paper, expected this autumn, will lay out further plans to tackle behaviour in schools. In the meantime, the DfE has announced an initial wave of 21 schools that will serve as attendance and behaviour hubs. These hubs will share strategies and best practices from school leaders with a proven track record of improving attendance and behaviour, aiming to lift standards across the board.
Disruption in the classroom remains a significant barrier to learning. Data from the DfE reveals that seven out of every 30 classroom minutes are lost to disruption—a staggering figure that underscores the scale of the problem. It’s a reality that resonates with teachers on the ground. A recent survey by the NASUWT teaching union found that 81% of more than 5,800 members felt the number of pupils exhibiting violent and abusive behaviour at school has increased. These challenges, teachers say, make it harder than ever to deliver the quality education every child deserves.
Pepe Di’Iasio, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL), welcomed Phillipson’s call for a united front. “It is only through working collectively – families and school together – that we will get to grips with these issues,” he said. However, Di’Iasio also called for more tangible support from the government, noting, “It is extremely difficult to put in place the pastoral systems necessary to support children and young people given the chronic underfunding of the education system.”
Parents, too, have a crucial role to play. Jason Elsom, CEO of the charity Parentkind, emphasized, “Parents play a vital role in assuring that their children attend school and establish expectations for their children’s behaviour. Getting it right with parents is a big part of the answer.” Yet, Parentkind’s own 2024 survey of more than 5,000 parents found that 15% reported their child feels unsafe at school—a sobering reminder that efforts to improve attendance and behaviour must also address the root causes of children’s reluctance to attend.
To support the new programme, the DfE has appointed two attendance and behaviour ambassadors: Tom Bennett, a long-time adviser on school behaviour, and Jayne Lowe, a former pupil referral unit headteacher. Bennett summed up the vision: “Every child deserves a school that is safe and calm, where they can be treated with dignity – and so do all school staff. We’re drawing on the professional experience of some of the best schools in England that have successfully created exactly that.”
The political debate over school discipline and attendance remains heated. Shadow education secretary Laura Trott did not mince words, stating, “Behaviour and attendance are two of the biggest challenges facing schools and it’s about time the Government acted. Labour had the chance to take action in their Schools Bill, but they failed. There isn’t a single mention of discipline in the entire Bill. They have chosen to dismantle the very system that has driven up standards for decades.”
As the new school year begins, the government’s message is clear: reversing the tide of absenteeism and poor behaviour will require a united effort from all corners of society. With new initiatives, increased support, and a renewed call for parental involvement, the hope is that every child will have the chance to make the most of their education—and, in turn, their future.
