School dropout rates highest in rural areas

SCHOOL dropout rates are highest in rural areas, according to figures obtained by the Irish Examiner.

Based on figures supplied by the Taoiseach in the Dáil from the 2006 Census, Westmeath has the highest proportion of 15-year-olds who are no longer in education — recorded at 8.5%.

The Irish Examiner revealed last month that the latest Census figures show the national dropout rate among all 15-year-olds has more than doubled in a decade from 3.1% in 1996 to 6.3% last year.