Parents working from home are keeping children off school, claims Ofsted chief

manchestereveningnews.co.uk:

Since the coronavirus pandemic there's been a trend for employees to work from home on Mondays and Fridays. And parents are also keeping their children off school with them, the chief inspector of Ofsted has suggested.

Sir Martyn Oliver, who will launch his first annual report as Ofsted’s chief inspector, said the trend can be seen in lower school attendance on Fridays.

The boss of England’s education watchdog told Good Morning Britain (GMB) on Thursday: "Pre-pandemic, we used to notice as headteachers and teachers that if parents did work from home they would send their children in.

But now post-pandemic we also see parents are working from home and sometimes they keep their children off with them. READ MORE: "Absolutely disgusting!" Fury over the 200-yard bus lane which has raked in £1.5m in fines “We notice that because on Fridays attendance tends to go down more than any other day.” When asked about attendance, Sir Martyn said pandemic lockdowns and the “phenomenon” of home working was having an impact on pupil absences.