Record attendance for secondary schools

Secondary schools in the borough have achieved their best ever attendance figures beating the England and North West average.

The attendance for secondary schools across Rochdale was 93.16 per cent compared with a North West average 93.08 per cent and 93.12 per cent for the whole of England.

In addition the number of persistent absentees, pupils with less than 80 per cent attendance, has fallen to just 4 per cent of the school population. This figure compares to 4.4 per cent in the North West and 4.6 per cent for the whole of England.

Primary schools in the borough have improved on last year but just missed the local target of 95 per cent attendance, achieving 94.77 per cent.

The figure is lower than the North West average of 94.92 per cent and 94.92 per cent for the whole of England.

Sandra Bowness, Service Director for Learners and Young People said: “A big thank you has to go to all school staff and support services for achieving these excellent results.

“Our commitment to improving the attendance of our most vulnerable children, persistent absentees, has also paid off.”