All schools in England to be given AI-generated pupil attendance targets

Unions decry move, saying it will put more pressure on headteachers without tackling absence from classrooms

Every school in England is to be issued with an AI-generated target for minimum pupil attendance, the government has announced, as part of its continuing efforts to tackle absence in the country's classrooms.

Headteachers will be given the targets this month in an effort to boost attendance rates, which remain stubbornly below pre-pandemic levels.