Nearly 66,000 primary school pupils missed school for 20 days or more 

The number of students absent from schools for 20 days or more has been increasing at primary school level, according to the latest Tusla figures.

The number of students absent from schools for 20 days or more has been increasing at primary school level but decreasing slightly in secondary schools, according to figures published by Tusla.

The latest annual school attendance report which covers the 2017/18 school year shows 12.1% of primary schoolchildren missed school on 20 or more days — a total of 65,906 pupils  — up from 11.8% the previous year.