ONE in five Limerick schoolchildren are “chronic absentees” from both primary and secondary school, according to a shocking new report.
But they are still below the national average when it comes to missing days at school.
That’s according to the Tusla Education Support Service (TESS) just published, which has revealed that 22.1 per cent of primary school pupils nationally are recoded as having chronic absentee records, with that figure at 21.2 per cent for the 23/24 school year.
Those figures for Limerick were 20 per cent in primary education and 19.3 per cent in post-primary schools.
Chronic absenteeism is defined as missing 20 or more days in the school year.
The figures were revealed as TESS, in partnership with Minister for Education and Youth Helen McEntee, launched a nationwide campaign to promote regular school attendance in all counties across Ireland.
TESS director Áine O’Keeffe said that “the campaign aims to raise awareness about how many school days are being missed, and how those missed days can add up quickly over time”.
“Importantly, it also shows parents, guardians, and schools where they can find more information and support to help improve and promote school attendance.”
The latest TESS Annual Attendance Report and Student Absence Report for the 2023/2024 school year also shows that while absenteeism remains high, total days lost and chronic absenteeism have both fallen for the second consecutive year.
Minister McEntee said that while the reduction in the total number of days lost was positive, the level of absenteeism in schools remained far too high.
The data shows that overall in Limerick, the number of days lost by students at primary level represents 7.5 per cent of the total school days in the 2023/24 school year.
The data also shows that the number of days lost by Limerick students at post-primary level represents 9.7 per cent days of the total school days in the 2023/24 school year.
Nationally, the number of days lost in the latest full school year was eight per cent in the primary sector, while in post-primary, the total number of days lost has risen for the second consecutive year to 11.3 per cent of total school days.
The new data has shown that there has been a reduction in the level of chronic absenteeism in schools but that levels are still higher than pre-pandemic figures.
