For children to benefit as much as possible from their primary education, regular school attendance is a must.
Yet the Government’s latest absence and attendance figures, covering the full 2023/24 school year, show that the overall national absence rate - the percentage of half-days missed for all pupils - sits at 7.1%, still well above pre-pandemic figures. One in five pupils were also ‘persistently absent’, meaning they missed at least 10% of these half-day sessions.
A recent Department for Education report has shown just how disruptive these absences can be - even in the primary school years. It found that pupils who attended school nearly every day in Year 6 were 1.3 times more likely to meet the Government’s expected standards in reading, writing and maths compared to peers who only attended 90-95% of the time. This means missing just 10 days of school cuts their chances by around 25%.
We’ve taken a look at how the more than 120 primary schools across the Wakefield Council area stacked up, when it came to pupils missing class for any reason. Using this data, we’ve then created a league table celebrating the local state-funded primaries (including infant and junior schools) which have kept absence rates especially low.
Here are the 15 that came out on top:
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1. Carleton Park Junior and Infant School
At the top of the list is this primary academy in Pontefract. It has a roll size of about 207, and a considerably higher proportion of pupils meeting the Government’s expected standards in reading, writing, and maths than both the local and national averages. In the 2023/24 school year, it had a low overall absence rate of just 3.1%. | Google
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2. Larks Hill Junior and Infant School
Another Pontefract-based primary academy, Larks Hill has about 208 pupils, and is also an above average academic performer. In the 2023/24 school year, it had an overall absence rate of 3.2%. | Google
3. Jerry Clay Academy
Jerry Clay is a primary academy in Wrenthorpe. It has a roll size of about 211, with a very high rate of its Year 6 pupils meeting Government performance targets. In the 2023/24 school year, it had an overall absence rate of 3.4%. | Google
4. St Ignatius Catholic Primary School
St Ignatius is a Catholic primary academy, based in Ossett. It has a roll size of about 128 pupils. In the 2023/24 school year, it had an overall absence rate of 3.7%. | Google
5. Middlestown Primary Academy
This is a primary academy in the village of Middlestown, with about 199 pupils. It too had a notably higher-than-average proportion of them meeting reading, writing, and maths expectations. In the 2023/24 school year, it had an overall absence rate of 3.8%. | Google
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6. Ossett Flushdyke Junior and Infant School
This is a local authority-maintained primary school in Ossett. It has about 112 pupils, with an impressive number meeting Government targets. In the 2023/24 school year, it had an overall absence rate of 3.9%. | Google