The government committed to the creation of an EHE register as part of its schools white paper which was scrapped by Rishi Sunak late last year.
Speaking to CYP Now, Robin Walker, who was elected to the position in November after Robert Halfon was named as skills minister, said this should remain the “utmost priority” for Education Secretary Gillian Keegan.
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Rise in home schooling prompts concerns
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Latest guidance on strep A, scarlet fever and flu in schools and nurseries
The MP for Worcester, who was schools minister in 2021/22, that while there were “a number of things” included in the schools white paper that he “wasn’t sad to see the back of”, losing momentum on a legislative EHE was the “key disappointment” when it was shelved in December.
“I think one of the things we want to do as a committee is keep up the pressure for that reform because I think that's long overdue,” he added.
“Getting children into education, engaging with education” is crucial to improving outcomes for children in both education and later life, Walker said.
His comments come following the launch of an inquiry by the education select committee into the “causes and possible solutions to the growing issue of children’s absence from school”.
It will provide MPs with “an opportunity to bang the drum on the issue and keep pressing for improvement”, Walker said, adding: “It will also be a chance to have a look at what's working, what's not working and how can we share of it at the best practice within the sector around that.”
A study, published by the Key and Eduro, published last week, found that one in 10 children missed school in the last six months due to feeling unsafe, with those in certain minority groups more likely to report safety concerns.
Latest absence figures released by the Department for Education show that the overall absence rate for children during the current academic year to date is 7.7 per cent.
Absence rates hit 9.1 per cent at the end of the autumn term due to an increase in illnesses among children including flu, scarlet fever and strep A, DfE says.
