Ensuring that children are in school is a top priority for the government. The department routinely collects daily absence data to understand the causes for absence. The latest data is available here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/pupil-attendance-in-schools.

The data is one part of the department’s comprehensive national attendance strategy to ensure that every child registered at school attends every day. The strategy contains stronger expectations of schools, trusts and local authorities to work together to tackle absence as set out in guidance that will become statutory in August 2024. It also includes an attendance data tool allowing early identification and intervention of pupils at risk of persistent absence. Participation in this data tool will become mandatory from September 2024.

As a further part of the strategy, 10 Attendance Advisers will support local authorities and trusts, expanding the department’s attendance mentor pilot from 5 to 15 areas from September 2024, backed by an additional £15 million and reaching 10,000 children. This will double the number of lead attendance hubs, bringing the total to 32, supporting nearly 2,000 schools to tackle persistent absence.

Alongside these measures, the department is supporting schools in promoting good mental health in children. Key steps include making grants available to all state schools to train a Senior Mental Health lead to embed a whole school approach to mental health, and further rollout of Mental Health Support Teams to reach 50% of children by April 2025.

These measures are making a difference, in 2022/23 380,000 fewer children were persistently absent or not attending in than in 2021/22.

For those children who are not enrolled at a school, the department collects termly data on home educated children and children missing education from local authorities, doing so on a voluntary basis since October 2022, with the collection becoming mandatory this autumn. Analysis of the data is allowing the department to understand the drivers behind the rise in children not in school and take action where appropriate. The data is available at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/652cf499697260000dccf830/Elective_home_education_and_children_missing_education_2023-24_aggregate_data_collection_guide_v1.1.pdf.

Parents have a right to educate their children at home and must provide an efficient, suitable full-time education if the child is of compulsory school age. Local authorities hold the relevant powers to make enquiries with parents as to whether a suitable education is being provided. If home education appears not to be suitable, the local authority must commence the school attendance order process by first issuing a preliminary notice.

The government remains committed to legislation for a local authority registration system for children not in school. My hon. Friend, the Member for Meon Valley, Flick Drummond, introduced the Children Not in School (Registers, Support and Orders) Private Members’ Bill on 11 December 2023. The Bill’s Second Reading is scheduled for 15 March 2024. The government is working with her as she progresses her Bill.

Local authorities also have a duty to make arrangements to identify children in their area who are not in school or receiving a suitable education elsewhere. The department has issued statutory guidance for local authorities to support them in this duty, and is running a call for evidence on improving support for children missing education to inform future policy.

To keep all children safe, revisions to Working Together to Safeguard Children (2023), clarify that a multi-agency safeguarding response applies to all forms of abuse, neglect, and exploitation. In 2021, the department provided £1.5 million to 20 local authorities across 7 regions to develop and strengthen multiagency approaches to safeguarding adolescents at risk of harm outside the home. The department funded the £2.8 million Tackling Child Exploitation Support Programme (2019/2023) to help local areas develop their strategic response to extra-familial harms.

Tackling Human Trafficking and Modern Slavery remains a top priority for this government and we are committed to stamping out this abhorrent crime. Since its introduction, the Modern Slavery Act 2015, has given law enforcement agencies the tools to tackle modern slavery, including maximum life sentences for perpetrators and enhanced protection for victims.

We work with a range of partners, including law enforcement agencies to raise awareness of modern slavery, this includes training interventions for frontline services that might encounter victims of modern slavery and human trafficking, ensuring operational colleagues such as Border Force can recognise the signs of modern slavery and are equipped to step in.

Romania remains a crucial partner in our ambitions to tackle modern slavery globally and to reduce the number of victims, including girls trafficked to the UK for sexual exploitation. We have invested over £200,000 this financial year in a range of projects to strengthen Romanian law enforcement approaches, victim support organisations, and national strategies on trafficking.

Through the Home Office Modern Slavery Fund, we are also working with Nigeria, Albania and Vietnam to prevent people falling into slavery, including girls who are vulnerable to sexual exploitation. Our work in Albania has provided essential reintegration support to 330 victims of trafficking and worked with over 5,000 vulnerable people to prevent exploitation from occurring. A dashboard showcasing the results achieved can be accessed at: http://endhumantrafficking.al/ and can be disaggregated by gender and age.

The Government recognises there is yet more we can do to tackle this crime and bring offenders to justice. We are currently reviewing the 2014 Modern Slavery Strategy – a revised strategy will allow us to build on the progress we have made to date, adapt our approach to the evolving nature of these crimes, and continue our leadership in tackling modern slavery.