Some 70,000 pupils have missed half of school time, and more than 6,000 have not been to school at all during the last six years, according to numbers obtained in response to a Freedom of Information request.
The Scottish Conservatives asked all local authorities in Scotland to reveal their numbers. The response shows that from the school year beginning in 2019, 73,184 pupils only attained an attendance record of 50% by the year beginning 2024.
During the same period 6,270 pupils did not attend school at all. Aberdeen Council did not provide the required figures, and half of local authorities did not supply numbers for the full six year period, so the likelihood is that the real numbers are higher.
Scottish Conservative shadow education secretary Miles Briggs said: “School attendance in Scotland is in crisis, and these figures show the truly shocking scale of the problem.
“It’s utterly unacceptable that so many pupils have missed at least half of their schooling – and truly terrifying that more than 6,000 have not attended school at all.
“This is yet another indicator of the SNP’s desperate failure in education.
“We know that the best place for most children to learn is in the classroom, so the fact that thousands are missing school is deeply alarming and risks long-term harm to their education and wellbeing.
“The Scottish Conservatives are calling for urgent national action from SNP ministers to tackle persistent absence, support parents and pupils, and ensure that every child is in school and receiving the education they deserve.”
In Edinburgh 30.6% of secondary school pupils and 18.4% of primary school pupils missed more than 10% of the school year.
The full set of figures can be read here on the City of Edinburgh Council FOI disclosure log.
