Teachers told not to get 'tunnel vision' on exams and set kids up for happy life

In a speech to school leaders Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said getting top grades alone won't set children up for a happy life as she addressed the attendance crisis

Teachers have been urged not to get "tunnel vision" around exam results and do more to help children become healthy and happy adults.

Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson told school leaders that more must be done to tackle England's school attendance crisis. She added that top exam grades alone would "not set young people up for a healthy and happy life".

Ms Phillipson said: “Exam results open important doors to opportunity for young people; they show what pupils know and can do; they are and will continue to be the anchor of our education system.

"But A*s alone do not set young people up for a healthy and happy life. And where previous governments have had tunnel vision, we will widen our ambition.”

The Labour frontbencher said the Government "won't accept" poor attendance levels caused by leadership practices. Ms Phillipson said youngsters need to feel they "belong in school" to tackle high pupil absences.

Addressing 1,500 school and academy trust leaders, Ms Phillipson said: "The absence epidemic is the canary in the coal mine for belonging in our country and the way we tackle this, the way we rip out the roots of this generational challenge, is to rebuild belonging through partnership and responsibility.

"Parents have a responsibility to send their children to school, but schools and trusts must create welcoming, engaging and inclusive spaces for pupils. Our best schools and trusts do this, but we know that there is huge variation in attendance levels.

"Sometimes that reflects different intakes and resources, but sometimes it's difference in performance, whether leadership, practices or approach, and that we won't accept."

She said schools must do more to improve outcomes for children with special educational needs and disabilities (Send). In her speech to the Confederation of School Trusts (CST) conference, Ms Phillipson said the Government would "focus on improving inclusivity and expertise" in mainstream education settings for children with Send.

The Education Secretary said: "If we want to tackle the epidemic of school absence, children need to feel that they belong in school. If we want to transform the outcomes of all young people with Send, children need to feel that they belong in school.

"And if we want our young people to leave our school system, not just with A*s in their pocket, but with a sense of power and purpose, children need to feel like they belong. This government will always be strong on standards, but those standards will forever be in the pursuit of what's best for our children.

"Because if we fall into that trap of chasing a narrow shade of standards, structures-driven rather than child-focused, then children with Send get swept to the side and attendance crashes."