Royal show organisers stress educational value

The organisers of an agricultural show insist it does offer children an educational experience, amid new figures illustrating school absences.

Newly published Department for Education (DfE) data showed there was a spike in absences coinciding with last year's Royal Norfolk Show (RNS).

A record 15,000 children are expected to attend this year's event at the Norfolk Showground, near Norwich, on 24-25 June.

Royal Norfolk Agricultural Association chief executive Mark Nicholas is director of the show and said attending presented a "fantastic opportunity" for young people.

The DfE analysis compared absence rates for schools in Norfolk between the second day of the 2025 show and the previous Thursday.

A higher rate of absences was shown across all year groups, with Year 9 boys up the most at 5.1%, compared with 0.8% across England for the same age group.

The show was used as an example alongside similar increases in absences among Year 9 and 10 girls in the Liverpool area when Taylor Swift was performing in the city in June 2024.

The analysis also found absence rates were higher across all year groups on days that coincided with pupils' birthdays.

Nicholas said many children attend the RNS to take part in livestock competitions and musical performances.

He said: "It's not just coming with the school group to visit the education and learning aspects relating to food farming and countryside.

"The Norfolk and Suffolk Music Hub run a huge programme of live music and entertainment and the majority of groups taking part are school bands, school choirs."

Nicholas said about 160 schools and colleges were planning organised visits for this month's event, with The Princess Royal to be the guest of honour on the first day.

These would not be recorded by teachers as unauthorised absences.

But children attending the show outside of school groups would be deemed as unauthorised.

Historically children were given a day off school to attend the RNS.

The DfE analysis followed annual figures published in March that showed the overall absence rate for schools in England had dropped to 6.78% in 2024-25, down slightly from 7.15% for 2023-24.

Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said: "We've seen five million more days in the classroom last year – the biggest improvement in attendance in a decade.

"That's why we're giving schools better tools to identify problems early and work with families to address them, while encouraging parents to play their part in building strong attendance habits."

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