Why we’ll fund new ideas about attendance and parental engagement 

We have spent decades trying to raise attainment for disadvantaged pupils. We understand the problem better than ever. Yet too many still face barriers that limit their ability to access and benefit from a great education.

There are many such barriers. But two, in particular, remain highly significant and stubbornly resistant to change: attendance and parental engagement.

Governments have not ignored this challenge. From the pupil premium to the work of the Education Endowment Foundation, there has been a sustained effort to understand what works and to direct resources accordingly.

Attendance hubs are sharing practice across the country, and the recent schools White Paper calls for a more consistent approach to both pupil and parent engagement.

And yet, for all this activity, these challenges persist.

Attendance crisis

These are not simple problems.

Attendance is shaped by routines, expectations, family circumstances and wider context. But turning up matters, and for some pupils, absence becomes a pattern that is difficult to shift without sustained, tailored support.

Parental engagement is equally complex. What parents do matters more than who they are - but what they do is influenced by confidence, time, trust and prior experiences of education. Different communities face different challenges, and what works in one context may not work in another.

These are intractable challenges: persistent, context-specific and resistant to the idea of a silver-bullet solution.

New strategies

There is strong practice in the system. Schools, trusts and networks are working hard to improve attendance and strengthen relationships with families. We should build on what we know works.

But if we are honest, doing more of the same is unlikely to be enough. The system is very good at highlighting the problem and sharing practice, but less effective at systematically testing new solutions and learning from them.

If we want different outcomes, we need to be willing to try different approaches.

This is where innovation matters.

Evidence-based ideas

Innovation in education is not about novelty for its own sake. It is about creating the space for schools to test new ideas, refine them and evaluate their impact - grounded in the realities of classrooms and communities.

We have seen the power of this before. Free schools have shown what can be achieved when leaders are given the freedom to design around the needs of their pupils and communities, delivering strong outcomes, particularly for disadvantaged pupils.

And at a time when the education system is becoming more prescriptive, it is vital that we protect space for disciplined, evidence-informed and robustly evaluated innovation.

That is why the New Schools Network is starting a new Innovation Pilot Programme to fund schools and organisations to test approaches to tackle barriers to education. If you are working on an idea to improve attendance or parental engagement, we want to hear from you.

There is no silver bullet for these challenges, only the hard work of testing, learning and improving - and the willingness to try something new.

The schools that make the greatest difference are those that adapt, learn and lead.

If we are serious about raising attainment for disadvantaged pupils, we need more of that spirit across the system - and the conditions that enable it to thrive.

Meg Powell-Chandler is director of New Schools Network