Received from: AEP
Merged into composite 13
Congress notes the escalating numbers of children and young people who experience a range of barriers to attending school. Nearly one in five children and young people of compulsory school age were classed as ‘persistently absent’ in the last autumn term, due to a range of reported reasons including illness and mental health difficulties.
Congress asserts that to ensure that all children and young people benefit from education, robust and evidence informed measures must be put in place. Congress further asserts that current punitive and judgemental approaches are not only unhelpful but harmful.
Educational psychologists have long been at the forefront of research into the barriers affecting school attendance and have further led the field in developing best practice in supporting affected children and young people, and their families.
Congress calls on the government to develop best practice, in collaboration with educational psychologists and other specialists in this field, to support all children and young people to access education.
Association of Educational Psychologists