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Estimating the prevalence of young people absent from school due to bullying

About this study

This research was commissioned by Red Balloon Learner Centre Group with financial support from the Anti-Bullying Alliance (ABA) and The Foyle Foundation.

The purpose of the research was to produce an estimate of the number of young people of secondary school age (aged 11-15) frequently absent from state school because of severe experiences of bullying.  No accurate estimate of the size of this population currently exists, as existing research on bullying focuses on estimating its prevalence within schools.

Potential policy impact

This research will broaden the evidence base available to researchers, policy-makers and practitioners involved with school-based bullying.  The estimate of the number of young people absent from secondary school due to severe experiences of bullying will inform Red Balloon Leaner Centres' campaigning activities and their development of provision.

Methods

We sent a questionnaire to two samples whose absence from school due to bullying was likely. The first sample was children frequently absent from school and the second was children who were home educated. Samples were drawn from the National Pupil Database and Local Authority records of home educated children. Conducting this study presented special methodological challenges, which you can read about in Chapters 4 and Appendix A of the full report.

Researchers

 

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