Only a small minority of vulnerable children attended school in the early stages of the pandemic, increasing the risk of hidden harm. The Department acknowledges that the pandemic presented real safeguarding challenges. It kept schools open for vulnerable children—for example, those with a social worker or an education, health and care (EHC) plan, or those deemed ‘otherwise vulnerable’—because continued attendance was seen as an important way of safeguarding and supporting them. However, the ...

Only a small minority of vulnerable children attended school in the early stages of the pandemic, increasing the risk of hidden harm. The Department acknowledges that the pandemic presented real safeguarding challenges. It kept schools open for vulnerable children—for example, those with a social worker or an education, health and care (EHC) plan, or those deemed ‘otherwise vulnerable’—because continued attendance was seen as an important way of safeguarding and supporting them. However, the proportion of vulnerable children who attended school or college remained below 11% from 23 March to late May 2020, and only reached a weekly average of Type: conclusion | Number: 2 | Response status: under_consideration Government response: 2.1 The government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation. Target implementation date: January 2022 2.2 The department continues to work with the Association of Directors of Children’s Services (ADCS) and local authorities (LAs) to collect, interpret and