Quantifying the Association Between Family Homelessness and School Absence in Wales, UK

Abstract

Using administrative data linkage, this paper sought to quantify the impacts of family homelessness on pupil absence from school. It addresses a gap in United Kingdom (UK) homelessness research, which draws predominantly on qualitative methods and where there is a greater focus on people who fall outside of the statutory system, i.e., single people living on the streets, rather than families. Education records for the academic years 2012/13 to 2015/16 relating to pupils aged 5 to 15 years old living in a coastal city in Wales, UK, were linked to data on households assessed by the statutory housing service operating across the same region. Analysis of mean half-day sessions absent from school, and Poisson panel regression were used to explore associations between absenteeism (authorised, unauthorised, and total), and whether pupils were living in a household making a statutory homelessness application, i.e., experiencing family homelessness. On average, in any given academic year, pupils experiencing family homelessness (PEFH) missed 5 days more of school than pupils not experiencing family homelessness (PnEFH). Adjusted regression analysis found that the rate of total absence was 7% higher amongst PEFH compared to PnEFH, whilst for unauthorised absence it was 13% higher. When a student experienced family homelessness, this led to an increase in their rate of total absences by 5%—adjusting for other factors—compared to when they were not homeless. Findings have implications for statutory education and housing provision, specifically the need for greater cross-disciplinary working to prevent and alleviate the harms caused when families experience homelessness.