More than 14,000 children are persistently absent from school in Gloucestershire, it has been revealed.

Green Party county councillor Natalie Rothwell-Warn (Stroud Central), who chairs the children and family scrutiny committee at Gloucestershire County Council, told a recent meeting she was shocked by the figures.

“According to government data there is actually a total of 14,036 children and young people who were persistently absent in the academic year 2024/25,” she told the last full council meeting at Shire Hall.

“This equates to just under a fifth of pupils in the county,” she said. She explained that they are missing at least 10 per cent of scheduled school time in an academic year.

She said these absences equated to nearly eight of county secondary schools being empty for 19 days.”

“I was genuinely shocked to learn that more than 7,000 children and young people with SEND in Gloucestershire are persistently absent from school,” she said.

“This is not just a Gloucestershire issue. It is a national issue that deserves a serious national response.”

Cllr Rothwell-Warn has called for the Government to undertake an independent national inquiry into the causes of persistent absence among children and young people and to examine why so many pupils feel unable to engage with mainstream education.

Alongside concerns about attendance, Cllr Rothwell-Warn has also questioned whether the government’s ambitious SEND reform programme can be delivered at the pace expected and with the resources available.

Education and skills cabinet member Linda Cohen (LD, Wotton-under-Edge) said, in response to Cllr Rothwell-Warn’s question, that the national reform programme for SEND is significant and the council recognises that its delivery relies on effective partnership working.

She said the Gloucestershire implementation plan has been designed with a strong focus on risk management, phased implementation and ongoing oversight for that reason.