Liam Sloane, principal of Bolton College, said few students miss more than half their classes, but those who are absent often have mental health problems or are working part-time.
“Sometimes a student who can be offered a shift for £30 right away means more… than potentially qualifying six or seven months later,” he said.
He said there was a particular problem in GCSE English language and maths courses, which students in England must study alongside other subjects unless they achieve a grade 4 or above.
But he said the college’s attendance rates have improved in recent years, and this year it has added “positive engagement officers” to greet students every morning and follow up with those who don’t show up.
Dame Rachel said she expected the government to respond to her recommendations, including:
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Collecting and setting attendance targets for children aged 16 and 17 years.
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‘Accelerating’ creation of mental health support groups in colleges
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Improved work experience
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Introduction of free bus travel for children
Around one in eight people aged 16 to 24 are Nit, according to figures published by the Office for National Statistics.
In May, the first part of a major report by former minister Alan Milburn warned that the figure could rise to one in six within five years and that the country was “at risk of losing a lost generation”.
The latter part is expected to outline recommendations to address the issue in the coming weeks.
Dame Rachel’s report describes “hidden” nits as those who are enrolled but are permanently absent from college, while Milburn’s interim report uses it to describe those who are nits and do not claim benefits and are therefore more difficult to contact.
Kat Sezen, director of education policy for the Association of Colleges, said she agreed with many of the report’s recommendations but said that “financial pressure [were] limiting the ability of colleges to provide individualized support.”
“We have again and again called for increased investment, better integration of support services and a stronger national employer engagement strategy,” she said.
The DfE said further education students need to be prioritized in future reforms to help tackle the Neats crisis.
The spokesman also said a new qualification would be introduced to reduce the “endless treadmill” of students failing and retaking maths and English exams, and that the government would monitor attendance at colleges and speed up the creation of mental health support groups.