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Absence and attendance
4 articles
Absence data and expectations
- Attendance: national, LA and school data Compare your school's attendance data to others locally and nationally, using our summary of the data and templates. We explain how the data is collected and where you can find your own attendance data.
- Attendance: persistent absence threshold and statistics Pupils are persistent absentees if they miss 10% of sessions or more. Learn how to analyse your data, and see the national statistics.
- Attendance: the legal requirements Parents have a legal responsibility to send their child to school. Read on for guidance on authorised absence and learn what to do if pupils aren't attending.
- Study leave for pupils: requirements and guidance Find out if you can grant study leave and what you need to consider when granting it. Plus, learn which absence codes to use, and whether study leave counts towards attendance figures.
5 articles
Authorised and unauthorised absence
- Absence and attendance in the sixth form Find out what you need to record in your register for sixth-form students. Learn about setting sanctions and whether you have to inform parents about students' absence.
- Absence requests for religious observance Make sure you know how to handle requests for absence from both pupils and staff due to religious events. Also, find links to calendars of celebrations so you can keep on top of dates when you might see absence requests.
- Pupil term-time absence: what you need to know Term-time absences can only be granted in 'exceptional circumstances'. Know what factors you need to consider when deciding whether a circumstance is 'exceptional' and making a judgement around how long the pupil needs to be away from school.
- Tackling unauthorised absence: fining parents Your school is legally entitled to fine parents if their child has poor attendance. Find out when you can issue a penalty notice and whether you can challenge local authority decisions on penalty notices and prosecutions.
- Traveller pupils: absence and attendance Understand the legislation around attendance expectations for Traveller pupils, and find advice on when to authorise absence and which absence codes to use.
2 articles
Recording attendance
- Attendance register: requirements and guidance Be clear on the rules for registering pupil attendance and absence, so you can make sure your school is compliant. Find guidance on when to close the register, and see what approaches other schools take.
- Coronavirus: how to record attendance UpdatedFind out how to record attendance during the pandemic, including which codes you should use and when. The DfE has clarified that you'll need to continue to complete the educational setting status form on a daily basis.
8 articles
Strategies for managing attendance
- Flexi-schooling: guidance Can 'flexi-schooling' arrangements be put in place? We look at whether children can be educated both at home and at school, and what schools should consider before agreeing to requests. You'll also find advice on responsibility for the achievement of flexi-schooled pupils and recording attendance.
- Improving attendance: audit and tracking sheets Download our audit and tracking tools to help you identify issues in your school, so you can put targeted strategies in place to improve attendance.
- Improving attendance: strategies and factsheet (secondary) Find the tools you need to tackle attendance among persistently absent pupils or groups, even in a coronavirus context. Use our factsheet to remind parents of their responsibilities and help you embed a whole-school culture of high attendance.
- Improving the attendance of pupils eligible for pupil premium funding How can we raise attendance of pupils eligible for the pupil premium? We cite two case studies from schools that have raised attendance for pupils eligible for pupil premium funding. You will also find suggestions from one of our associate experts.
- Parenting contracts for poor attendance Get advice on parenting contracts, including when to use them in response to problems with behaviour or attendance, and see examples and guidance from local authorities.
- Reduced timetables for pupils Get to grips with reduced timetables (also known as part-time timetables). Find out when you can use them and what you need to consider before, during and after you've introduced them.
- Research into how attendance can impact attainment Read summaries of research and find links to case studies on improving attendance.
- Strategies to improve attendance in primary schools Read guidance on effective strategies for improving primary attendance, including 3 case studies of how different schools successfully tackled this issue.