Improving school attendance through better mental health and wellbeing

This project is led by Dr Jacqueline Phillips Owen from King’s College London. It is a collaboration between:

• Harris Federation
• King’s College London
• South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust
• University of Sussex

Background

Persistent absences in schools have increased from 11.2% in 2018 to 20.1% in 2025, according to data from the UK’s Department of Education.

Children miss school for a variety of reasons but many pf these persistent absences are linked to emotionally based school avoidance (EBSA). EBSA is where children miss school due to anxiety.

For some vulnerable groups the change from primary to secondary school can make anxiety worse. It is at this point that EBSA often starts or becomes worse.

Providing children with support to improve their mental health during this period (ages 10-13) could potentially improve their school attendance and long-term outcomes.

Project aims

During this project, we will build our understanding of EBSA, particularly during the transition from primary to secondary school.

We will also develop and evaluate evidence-based interventions and school-wide strategies to improve attendance and wellbeing for vulnerable young people.

What we hope to achieve

We hope to:

• Identify students and families experiencing (or at risk of) EBSA
• Reduce EBSA in secondary school by adapting an existing intervention
• Develop an assessment process and student-facing intervention for schools to deliver

We will also produce reports for school leadership to understand mental health and wellbeing needs and how these relate to school attendance problems. This will inform strategies for intervention both at an individual and whole school level