How to use part-time timetables to improve attendance: case studies

Read our case studies to see how a school used a reduced timetable to help tackle attendance challenges and support the individual needs of 2 different pupils. Plus, find another case study from the DfE.

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on 6 March 2025
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Contents
  1. What is a part-time timetable?
  2. Case studies from a school
  3. Case study from the DfE

What is a part-time timetable?

Sometimes schools can use a part-time (reduced) timetable to temporarily support a pupil to access as much education as possible and meet their individual needs. This is explained in paragraph 66 of the DfE's statutory attendance guidance.

It's different from a flexi-schooling arrangement.

This article will focus on how to implement reduced timetables to address attendance barriers for pupils. Read more about part-time timetables for pupils, including your requirements and responsibilities, in our other article.

Part-time timetables should be a last resort

This is because part-time timetables go against a pupil’s statutory right to a full-time education, and should be used only in exceptional circumstances (see our article on part-time timetables for pupils for what counts as exceptional circumstances, and paragraphs 65 and 66 of the statutory attendance guidance).

We spoke to Penny, assistant headteacher and inclusion manager at a primary school in England, about the school’s use of