May 2004
Information Update

Galway Schools to Give First Annual Report on Absences at the End of this School Year

Galway school principals were today asked to compile their first Annual Attendance Reports at the end of this school year at the launch of the National Educational Welfare Board (NEWB), the new independent agency set up to ensure that children attend school or receive a minimum education. Up to this year, there was no designated school attendance service in Galway.

Using similar reports from schools around the country, the NEWB will be able to compile the first national statistics on school attendance. Eddie Ward, CEO of the Board, explained that these crucial first statistics on school attendance will then be used to plan and develop the educational welfare service effectively and according to most need. If the statistics, for example, show that there is a higher than expected level of absenteeism in Galway, the Board will look at ways of putting more services into the city.

The Board also outlined its proposed standardised system for schools to report absences over 20 days at five set times throughout the school year. The new system, which will be computerised, will be in place for the school year starting September 2004.

Stressing the importance of regularity in school life, Eileen Fahey, Regional Manager for the West / North West, outlined the replies of school children in her region to questions about school attendance. In preliminary research she found that children enjoyed school and did not, in general, like to miss out on it.

“When I asked school children how they feel coming back after being absent from school they used words such as bad because it is hard to catch up on lost time, scared that I wouldn’t be able to catch up, and separated from others until I catch up,” she said. “These same children spoke about the many reasons they go to school including to get a job, to make friends, to learn, to be smart, to have a good future."“To sum up, what these children are saying is that education increases your chance of employment and education can lead to happiness and fulfilment in life. That is exactly what the NEWB is saying tonight. By missing out on school, a child is actually missing out on many more life chances.”

The NEWB’s service in Galway was launched by poet Rita Ann Higgins, who left school at age 14 and then took a “lonely route” back to education as an adult. The launch was an information night for parents, guardians and all those involved in the education of young people as well as school principals and teachers.

The NEWB provides an intensive service to 38 schools in Galway City. This means that each school has a designated Educational Welfare Officer (EWO). Galway is one of six cities provided with an intensive service by the NEWB. In addition, the Board provides an intensive service in 12 regional towns including Ennis, Sligo and Letterkenny in the West / North West Region. The five strong Galway based team also follows up on urgent cases throughout the Galway region where children are not receiving an education.

Missing out on education – some facts

15% of young people leave school without a Leaving Certificate and 3% with no qualification at all – that’s nearly one in five. Absenteeism is an early indication of early school leaving.

Up to 1,000 children don’t make it to secondary school.

3 out of 4 prisoners had poor attendance at school and about 40% left school before age 14. (Morgan, Kett, 2003)

More than 500,000workers do not have a Leaving Certificate, 220,000 have no 2nd level qualification and 295,000 have the Junior Certificate or its predecessors (Irish Labour Market Review, 2003).

Savings of at least €14 million a year on unemployment costs, crime etc., could be made if young people could be prevented from dropping out of school before their Junior Cert. (ESRI, 2003)