Nursery World - Councils overlook traveller children

Ofsted inspectors have called on local education authorities to co-ordinate services more effectively to improve traveller children's access to education so they do not 'linger on the periphery of the education system'. A report, Provision and Support for Traveller Pupils, published last week, said that while some LEAs in England were improving education access for traveller children, attendance and attainment levels remained low, and too often travellers were regarded as an 'unseen' minority ethnic group with schools failing to take account of this in developing the curriculum. One council revealed that only 29 per cent of traveller children had received some form of pre-school provision, while another said that 75 per cent of four-year-olds were enrolled in pre-school settings.

A report, Provision and Support for Traveller Pupils, published last week, said that while some LEAs in England were improving education access for traveller children, attendance and attainment levels remained low, and too often travellers were regarded as an 'unseen' minority ethnic group with schools failing to take account of this in developing the curriculum. One council revealed that only 29 per cent of traveller children had received some form of pre-school provision, while another said that 75 per cent of four-year-olds were enrolled in pre-school settings.

The Ofsted report was the result of a two-year survey of 11 LEAs, which evaluated their provision and support in primary and secondary schools. The survey found that in about half the LEAs the quality of traveller education support services is good.

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