Belonging First – Why Connection Comes Before Attendance

Recently a clip from Attendance Magazine really stood out to me: before we can expect learning or attendance to improve, we have to start with belonging.

Some pupils arrive at school steady, safe and ready to learn.
Others step through the gates carrying experiences of instability, loss or trauma  - their nervous systems already working hard to stay regulated in a world that doesn’t always feel predictable or kind.

For those pupils, learning can’t be the first expectation. Before attendance can improve and engagement can flourish, they need:

 • Safety – a calm, predictable environment
• Connection – trusted adults who see and hear them
• Belonging – a genuine sense that school is for them

We often talk about attendance in data terms – percentages, dashboards, targets. But behind every number is a child’s nervous system deciding whether the world is safe enough to show up.

If a pupil arrives anxious or dysregulated, the first lesson can’t be algebra – it has to be that school is a safe anchor.

At No Isolation, we’re proud to have been working closely with Wakefield’s Educational Psychology Team, who are one of the local authorities  leading the way in reframing attendance through the lens of belonging first.

Their message is clear -  attendance trends and Emotionally Based School Non-Attendance (EBSNA) are a systems issue, not a child-shaped problem. According to the Department for Education (2024), one in five pupils nationally are persistently absent, and more than 150,000 are severely absent. Behind those statistics are young people silently struggling with EBSNA  – often those with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND), who are twice as likely to be persistently absent.

Dr David Mann, Senior Educational Psychologist at Wakefield Council, and the wider Educational Psychology team remind us that belonging and inclusion are not privileges to be earned, but rights that must be embedded. Humans are wired for connection – and relationships are the mechanism through which young people regulate, recover and re-engage.

That’s why trauma-informed principles matter so deeply: Safety. Calm. Collective efficacy. Connectedness. Hope.

These are not soft concepts; they are structural conditions for engagement.

Schools doing this well recognise that sustainable attendance starts with culture, relationships and a sense of belonging. With adults who understand behaviour as communication and respond with curiosity, not compliance.

In Wakefield, the AV1 telepresence robot has become part of that inclusive toolkit. They’re not a technology story; they’re a belonging story.

Used collaboratively, AV1 has  helped pupils reconnect with peers, reduce reintegration anxiety and rebuild confidence. One pupil, initially too anxious to speak through their AV1, began by simply watching lessons from home. Over time, that gentle connection led them to attend school events and – eventually – return full-time.

What made the difference wasn’t pressure; it was patience, partnership and presence.

Improving attendance isn’t just about systems; it’s about the emotional climate we create every morning. The look on a teacher’s face when a pupil walks in. The predictability of routines. The invitation – explicit or implicit – that says you belong here.

When safety and connection come first, attendance follows. When belonging becomes the culture, inclusion stops being a policy and starts being a lived experience.

A Question for You

How does your school or local authority  help pupils feel safe and connected as a foundation for attendance?

We’d love to hear what’s working for you in helping pupils rediscover a sense of belonging.

‍