More than a third of children from poorer families are now regularly missing school, according to an analysis of official figures by the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS).
37pc of pupils on free school meals now miss at least one day of education every fortnight, the IFS found, up from 23pc before the pandemic.
Those from poorer backgrounds are more likely to be “persistently absent”, the IFS found, warning that this was leading to a deep gap in educational achievement between rich and poor.
Headline figures put English schoolchildren ahead of most other rich countries in reading and maths skills.
However, Imran Tahir, IFS research economist and an author of the report, said the gulf in achievement between the richest fifth of 15-year-olds and the poorest fifth was as big as the gap between England’s educational results and Colombia’s.
He added: “If the next government wants to tackle these entrenched inequalities, its challenge will be made even more difficult by the legacy of the pandemic.”
The number of children who are missing for more than half the time has also doubled since 2019, the IFS said, with those from poorer families disproportionately represented. However, truancy on this scale remained relatively rare.
The growing number of children skipping school since Covid has sparked alarm among teachers and politicians, who fear lasting impacts for a generation of young people.
Absences have risen by nearly two-thirds among all pupils since 2019, according to figures from the Department of Education. Pupils now miss on average 14 days of school a year, compared with nine previously.
While regular absence is worst among pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds, the IFS said truancy rates among students from wealthier families had also doubled since the pandemic. One in six are now persistently absent.
Labour has said it would improve school attendance through free breakfast clubs for primary schools, better mental health support and Ofsted reviews of attendance data.
The Government earlier this year announced £15m worth of investment over three years to address truancy. It promised more targeted support for 10,000 severely absent pupils and their families and said it would deliver 18 new “attendance hubs” in England, bringing the total to 32.
The IFS warned that “pious promises” to tackle educational inequalities had “consistently come to nought”.
The attainment gap between 16-year-olds receiving free school meals and their peers has barely shifted for the past 20 years.
Only 43pc received at least a grade 4 in English and maths last year, compared with 72pc among those from better-off families. This is despite the fact that England is one of the world’s best performers in terms of average school attainment.
Amongst rich countries, only Ireland, Canada, Estonia and Japan manage to deliver stronger average performances and lower inequality than England.
Mr Tahir said narrowing the achievement gap was being made more difficult but rising rates of mental health problems among children and increasingly complex needs.
He said: “Rates of special educational needs and mental health challenges are rising sharply. And twice as many young people now say they strongly dislike school as before the pandemic.”
These challenges are placing schools and teachers under “severe strain”, he said. Addressing these issues should be “key” for any incoming government, he added.
Josh Hillman, of the Nuffield Foundation, a social mobility charity, said: “Inequalities in educational achievement and opportunity remain large, and the pandemic has only widened them further. Incoming education ministers that seek to address this will need to develop innovative and well-resourced policies.
“Other government departments will also need to play a part to support the broader well-being of disadvantaged children and young people, essential for their educational development.”
Disclaimer: The copyright of this article belongs to the original author. Reposting this article is solely for the purpose of information dissemination and does not constitute any investment advice. If there is any infringement, please contact us immediately. We will make corrections or deletions as necessary. Thank you.
