School absenteeism cases on Tusla’s national waiting list have surged to the highest recorded level due to the rising number of homeless children, insufficient numbers of staff, and increasingly complex cases such as students with mental health issues and special needs.

THE Government has been urged to properly fund the National Educational Welfare Board (NEWB) to help reverse trends that show one-quarter of second-level students in poor areas missed at least 20 days of school last year.