Northern Ireland

Around one in 20 pupils not in school last week due to Covid-related reasons

Around five per cent of pupils were absent due to Covid-19 last week
Around five per cent of pupils were absent due to Covid-19 last week Around five per cent of pupils were absent due to Covid-19 last week

AROUND one in 20 pupils were not in school last week due to Covid-related reasons, according to new figures.

It marked the lowest pupil attendance of the 2021-22 academic year so far, according to the Department of Education.

The statistics also reveal that just under one in every 10 teachers were also absent due to coronavirus-linked reasons over the week of January 24 to 28.

Around half of teacher absences due to the virus were covered by substitute teachers.

The figures, which are based on information provided by schools, show that 82.2 per cent of pupils were educated in school during last week with around one in every 30 self-isolating and learning from home, but they were not marked absent.

While around five per cent of pupils were absent from school due to coronavirus, 8.5 per cent were off due to unspecified non-Covid reasons.

The data also reveals that the highest rate of pupil absences were in special schools and non-grammar post-primaries.

It comes as recent figures reveal that 41 per cent of all cases in the past seven days in Northern Ireland have been in people under the age of 19.

This age group has accounted for almost 12,000 recorded infections of the virus with the largest number of cases in people aged 10 to 14.

The highest infection rate among all age bands was in girls aged 10 to 14, with 3,515 positive cases per 100,000.