# School attendance policy

> iFairy working template — not official guidance. Built by reading the official documents listed under "Based on"; each requirement cites the document and section it comes from. Check the current official wording before you adopt it, and adapt it to your setting and your local authority or trust procedures.

- **Status:** Required by law or statutory guidance — Working together to improve school attendance is statutory guidance: schools, trusts and governing bodies must have regard to it (para 1). It says all schools are 'expected' to have a clear, written attendance policy with the minimum contents in para 26, and trusts and governing bodies must ensure their schools have one (para 77). Keeping admission and attendance registers, using the national codes, register retention, restricting leave of absence (maintained and non-maintained special schools) and making returns to the local authority are legal duties under the School Attendance (Pupil Registration) (England) Regulations 2024.
- **Applies to:** England; Primary, Secondary, Special, All-through
- **Review:** Review at least annually and whenever the guidance, the local authority's Local Code of Conduct for penalty notices or your school day changes. Seek pupils' and parents' views when you review (para 30).
- **Template last reviewed by iFairy:** 2026-10-04

## Aims and legal basis

_Say why attendance matters, what the law requires of parents, and that the policy is applied fairly._

**Must include:**

- Parents of a registered pupil have a legal duty to ensure their child attends every day the school is open, except in a small number of allowable circumstances. _(Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024, Chapter 1, para 11)_
- The policy should account for the specific needs of certain pupils and cohorts, be applied fairly and consistently, and the school must consider its Equality Act 2010 obligations in developing and implementing it. _(Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024, Chapter 2, para 27)_

**Questions to answer:**

- Who is this policy for: one school, or every school in the trust? If trust-wide, where are the school-specific parts (times, contacts, data priorities)?
- Which of your pupil groups have historically lower attendance, so the aims can name them?

[School name] expects every pupil to attend every day the school is open. Good attendance is the foundation of learning, wellbeing and safety. We work in partnership with families, listening to and removing barriers to attendance, and we use formal support and legal measures only when support has not worked or is not appropriate. This policy follows the Department for Education's statutory guidance Working together to improve school attendance (August 2024) and the School Attendance (Pupil Registration) (England) Regulations 2024. We apply it fairly and consistently while taking account of individual needs and our duties under the Equality Act 2010.

## Who to contact and who is responsible

_Name the Senior Attendance Champion and the day-to-day and more detailed contacts, and set out what governors and staff do._

**Must include:**

- The name and contact details of the school's Senior Attendance Champion. _(Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024, Chapter 2, para 26)_
- Contact details of the staff pupils and parents should contact about attendance day to day (e.g. form tutor, attendance officer) and for more detailed support (e.g. head of year, pastoral lead, family liaison officer). _(Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024, Chapter 2, para 26)_
- A designated senior leader (Senior Attendance Champion) with overall responsibility for championing and improving attendance, setting a clear vision, maintaining systems all staff follow, and monitoring the effectiveness of the school's strategies. _(Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024, Chapter 2, para 25)_
- Governors or trustees regularly review attendance data at board meetings, benchmark it, focus on cohorts with historically poor attendance, and ensure staff receive attendance training. _(Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024, Chapter 3, paras 78 and 81)_

**Questions to answer:**

- Is the Senior Attendance Champion on the senior leadership team, with time to do the role?
- Will the board have a named governor or trustee for attendance (para 74 says boards may wish to)?
- How often will governors receive attendance data, and in what format?

Senior Attendance Champion: [name, role], [email], [phone].
Day-to-day attendance queries (reporting absence, lateness): [attendance officer name], [phone line and opening time], [email].
More detailed support: [head of year / pastoral lead / family liaison officer], [contact].
Governor/trustee with responsibility for attendance: [name].
The governing board [or trust board] reviews attendance data at least [termly], compares it with local and national figures, and holds leaders to account for this policy.

## Expectations of pupils and parents: the school day and reporting absence

_Set out the start and close of the day, when the register closes, and how to tell the school about an unexpected absence._

**Must include:**

- Attendance and punctuality expectations of pupils and parents, including start and close of the day, register closing times, and how to inform the school of the reason for an unexpected absence. _(Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024, Chapter 2, para 26)_
- The length of time the register is open, after which a pupil is recorded as absent: the same for every session and no longer than 30 minutes. _(Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024, Chapter 2, para 43; Chapter 8, codes L and U (paras 291, 403))_
- The register is taken at the start of each morning session and once during each afternoon session, using the national attendance and absence codes. _(Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024, Chapter 2, para 34)_
- Parents are advised to notify the school on the first day a child cannot attend through illness; schools should not routinely ask for medical evidence and should be flexible about its form when it is genuinely needed. _(Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024, Chapter 8, code I (paras 364–366))_

**Questions to answer:**

- What are your exact gate-open, start, register-close and end times for morning and afternoon sessions?
- How should parents report absence (phone line, app, email) and by what time?
- When, in your school, would you ask for medical evidence, and what forms will you accept?

The school gates open at [08:40]. Registration starts at [08:50] and the morning register closes at [09:20]. The afternoon register is taken at [13:15] and closes at [13:45]. Pupils arriving after the register has opened but before it closes are marked late (code L). Pupils arriving after the register closes are recorded as absent for that session (code U, an unauthorised absence) unless another code applies.

If your child cannot attend, please contact [attendance line / app] by [09:00] on each day of absence, giving the reason and when you expect them back. We do not usually ask for medical evidence for illness; we will talk to you if we need more information. Please book medical and dental appointments outside the school day wherever possible. If that is not possible, ask [attendance officer] in advance; your child should be out of school only for as long as the appointment needs.

## Leave of absence and term-time holidays

_Explain how to request leave, the only circumstances in which it can be granted, and how part-time timetables are agreed._

**Must include:**

- The process for requesting a leave of absence. _(Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024, Chapter 2, para 26)_
- Leave is restricted to the circumstances in regulation 11: regulated performance or employment abroad under licence, interviews, study leave for public examinations (not mocks), a temporary time-limited part-time timetable, and other exceptional circumstances. Maintained schools and non-maintained special schools must restrict leave to these; for exceptional circumstances they require a prior request from a parent the pupil normally lives with. _(Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024, Chapter 2, para 37)_
- A holiday is generally not an exceptional circumstance, and leave should not be granted to take part in protest activity during school hours. _(Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024, Chapter 2, para 38)_
- Medical and dental appointments should be made out of school hours where possible; otherwise the school's agreement is needed in advance and the pupil is out only for the minimum time necessary (recorded as code M). _(Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024, Chapter 8, code M (paras 319–320))_
- A part-time timetable is used only in very exceptional circumstances, never to manage behaviour; it needs agreement of the school and the parent the pupil lives with, a clear ambition, regular reviews and a proposed end date. _(Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024, Chapter 2, paras 66–67)_

**Questions to answer:**

- Who decides leave requests, how quickly, and how will the decision be recorded and communicated?
- What examples of 'exceptional circumstances' will you give parents, so decisions are consistent?
- Who signs off part-time timetables and who tracks review and end dates?

Leave of absence during term time can only be granted in the circumstances set out in the School Attendance (Pupil Registration) (England) Regulations 2024. Requests must be made in advance by a parent the pupil normally lives with, using [form / app], at least [4 weeks] before the leave. The headteacher [or named deputy] considers each request individually and replies in writing within [10 school days]. If leave is granted, the school decides how long it lasts. Leave for holidays will not normally be granted. Leave taken without permission is recorded as unauthorised and may lead to a Notice to Improve or penalty notice (see 'Support first, then formal action').

## How we follow up absence day to day

_Describe first-day calling, follow-up of unexplained absence, and contact with other professionals._

**Must include:**

- The school's day-to-day processes for managing attendance, for example first day calling and following up unexplained absence. _(Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024, Chapter 2, para 26)_
- Contact parents on the first day of absence where no reason is given, make further contact if absence continues to ensure safeguarding, and enter the correct code no later than 5 working days after the session. _(Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024, Chapter 2, para 43)_
- Inform a pupil's social worker and/or youth offending team worker of any unexplained absence. _(Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024, Chapter 2, para 53)_
- Registers are kept electronically; every entry is preserved for 6 years, and amendments show the original entry, the new entry, the reason, the date and who made it. _(Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024, Chapter 2, paras 31 and 36)_

**Questions to answer:**

- Who makes first-day calls, by what time, and what happens if no one can be reached (second contact, home visit, DSL referral)?
- At what point does continued unexplained absence trigger a safeguarding response?
- How will staff know which pupils have a social worker or youth offending team worker?

By [09:45] each day, [attendance officer] contacts the parents of every pupil absent without a reason. If we cannot make contact we try all emergency contacts and, by [day 2/3], we may make a home visit and inform the designated safeguarding lead. For pupils with a social worker or youth offending team worker, we tell that worker about any unexplained absence the same day. Unexplained absences are given the correct code as soon as we know the reason and no later than 5 working days after the session. Register amendments are made only by [named roles] and are recorded in [MIS].

## Keeping families informed and promoting good attendance

_Explain how the school promotes and recognises attendance and how parents will hear about their child's attendance._

**Must include:**

- How the school is promoting and incentivising good attendance. _(Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024, Chapter 2, para 26)_
- Regularly inform parents about their child's attendance, avoiding headline percentages and explaining time missed and its impact on learning. _(Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024, Chapter 2, para 43)_
- Use the child's name and accurate, specific data, frame absence as lessons missed, name specific people who can help, and balance a firm, factual tone with empathy; consider a phone call for parents whose first language isn't English or who have a disability affecting written communication. _(Attendance: toolkit for communicating with families, Ways to communicate with parents and carers about attendance)_

**Questions to answer:**

- How often will parents get attendance updates, and through which channel?
- How will recognition schemes avoid penalising pupils with disabilities, long-term illness or caring responsibilities?
- What are your trigger points for a letter, a call and a meeting? The toolkit suggests being transparent about them.

We send every family an attendance update [each half term], showing days and lessons missed rather than a percentage. If a pattern of absence starts, [form tutor] will contact you early, usually by phone. We celebrate good and improving attendance through [assemblies / class recognition], taking care that no child is disadvantaged because of a disability, health condition or other circumstance outside their control.

## How we use attendance data

_Set out the school's strategy for using data to target support to the pupils and cohorts who need it most._

**Must include:**

- The school's strategy for using data to target attendance improvement efforts to the pupils or pupil cohorts who need it most. _(Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024, Chapter 2, para 26)_
- Monitor weekly patterns at individual, cohort and year-group level (including punctuality), analyse half-termly, termly and yearly data, benchmark against local, regional and national figures, and report to tutors, leaders (including SENCO, DSL and pupil premium lead) and the board. _(Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024, Chapter 2, para 45)_

**Questions to answer:**

- Which cohorts will you track? Para 46 suggests e.g. year groups, SEND, pupils with a social worker or looked after, free school meals, and groups with historically lower attendance.
- Who produces the weekly report and who acts on it?

Every week [attendance officer] reports attendance and punctuality by pupil, class/form, year group and the cohorts we track: [list]. Pupils whose attendance is falling are discussed at [weekly pastoral meeting], not only those already persistently absent. Each half term [Senior Attendance Champion] analyses patterns by code, day and cohort, compares them with local and national figures, and reports to the governing board.

## Support first: persistent and severe absence

_Explain how support intensifies as absence rises, and when it is formalised with the local authority._

**Must include:**

- The school's strategy for reducing persistent and severe absence, including access to wider support services and when support will be formalised with the local authority. _(Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024, Chapter 2, para 26)_
- Persistent absence is missing 10% or more of school; severe absence is missing 50% or more, and severely absent pupils are the top priority for support across partners. _(Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024, Chapter 5, paras 132–133)_
- As a minimum, meet pupils at risk of persistent or severe absence and their parents to understand barriers and agree actions; where engagement is difficult, hold more formal conversations (likely led by the Senior Attendance Champion) explaining the consequences and the help available. _(Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024, Chapter 2, paras 19–20)_
- Agree a joint approach with the local authority for all severely absent pupils, and work with other local schools such as previous schools and siblings' schools. _(Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024 summary table responsibilities august, Persistently absent pupils and Severely absent pupils tables (pp. 7–8))_

**Questions to answer:**

- Who is your named contact in the local authority School Attendance Support Team, and when are your Targeting Support Meetings?
- What support can you offer in school (mentoring, adjusted routines, transport help) before referring out?
- At what point will you consider an attendance contract or early help assessment?

When a pupil's attendance starts to fall, [form tutor] contacts the family. If it falls towards 90% or below, [pastoral lead] meets the pupil and parents to understand the barriers and agree an action plan, reviewed every [4 weeks]. Where barriers are outside school we help the family access support, including an early help assessment where appropriate. Where support is not engaged with, [Senior Attendance Champion] holds a formal meeting and explains the possible legal consequences. Pupils who are severely absent (attending half the time or less) are discussed with the local authority at our Targeting Support Meetings and a joint plan is agreed.

## Pupils with SEND, health needs or a social worker

_Show how the same ambition applies with additional support and adjustments._

**Must include:**

- Pupils with long-term health conditions or SEND have the same attendance ambition, with additional support where needed; staff do not diagnose, but consider adjustments, formal reasonable adjustments under section 20 of the Equality Act 2010, and time-limited phased returns, agreed and reviewed with the pupil and parents. _(Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024, Chapter 2, paras 56–59)_
- For a pupil with an EHC plan, tell the local authority when attendance falls or barriers relating to their needs arise, and work with it to review the plan where needed. _(Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024, Chapter 2, para 61)_
- Make a sickness return to the local authority where a pupil recorded with code I is likely to miss 15 school days, consecutive or cumulative, through illness. _(Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024, Chapter 2, paras 49 and 58)_

**Questions to answer:**

- How do the SENCO, DSL and designated teacher feed into attendance planning?
- Which adjustments (uniform, transport, start times, lunchtime) can you offer, and who approves them?

We hold the same high expectations for every pupil and recognise that some need extra help to attend. For pupils with SEND or a health condition, [SENCO / pastoral lead] works with the family to agree adjustments, reviewed at least [each half term]. Where a pupil has an EHC plan we tell the local authority if attendance falls. Where a pupil is likely to miss 15 or more school days through illness, we make a sickness return to the local authority so that education can continue.

## Notices to Improve, penalty notices and other legal measures

_Give the details of the National Framework for Penalty Notices and when the school will seek legal intervention._

**Must include:**

- Details of the National Framework for Penalty Notices and when Notices to Improve, penalty notices or other legal interventions will be sought if support is not appropriate (e.g. a term-time holiday), not successful or not engaged with. _(Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024, Chapter 2, para 26)_
- State-funded schools must consider a penalty notice in each case where a pupil reaches the national threshold, with no blanket position either way. _(Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024, Chapter 6, para 181)_
- A Notice to Improve is normally a final chance to engage with support, with an improvement period of 3 to 6 weeks. _(Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024, Chapter 6, paras 186–188)_
- First penalty notice £160, reduced to £80 if paid within 21 days; a second to the same parent for the same child within 3 years is £160; no third within 3 years. _(Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024, Chapter 6, para 191)_
- Penalty notices are issued only by a headteacher or a deputy or assistant head they authorise, a local authority officer or the police, in line with the local authority's Local Code of Conduct. _(Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024, Chapter 6, paras 178–179)_

**Questions to answer:**

- Does your school issue penalty notices itself, or ask the local authority to? Who is authorised?
- What does your local authority's Local Code of Conduct say (e.g. use of discretion before the threshold)?

When a pupil reaches 10 sessions of unauthorised absence (including late arrival after the register closes) within any 10 school weeks, [Senior Attendance Champion] will consider each case individually. If support is appropriate, we will continue it or send a Notice to Improve setting out an improvement period of [3–6] weeks. If support is not appropriate, for example a holiday taken without permission, a penalty notice will usually be requested from / issued in line with [local authority]'s Local Code of Conduct. Further legal measures, such as an attendance contract, education supervision order or prosecution, are a last resort.

## Information we share with the local authority and children missing education

_Record the statutory returns and what happens when a pupil may be missing education._

**Must include:**

- Make a New Pupil return within 5 days of adding a pupil to the admission register (except at the start of the most junior year unless requested). _(Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024, Chapter 7, para 211)_
- Make a Deletion return when a pupil's name is deleted; names may be deleted only on the grounds in regulation 9. _(Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024, Chapter 7, paras 218–220)_
- Attendance returns: names and addresses of pupils of compulsory school age who fail to attend regularly or have 10 continuous school days of unauthorised absence, at a frequency agreed with the local authority (at least monthly). _(Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024, Chapter 2, para 49)_
- Ensure all unexpected and unexplained absences are promptly enquired about; make a referral to the child's home local authority CME team as soon as possible if enquiries suggest the child will no longer attend and no written notice of other education has been given, and keep helping with joint enquiries. _(Children Missing Education — summary responsibilities cme guidance 2025, Children at risk of becoming CME or suspected CME, tables 1–2 (pp. 5–6))_

**Questions to answer:**

- Who in school makes each return, and how (automated from the MIS or manual)?
- Who is your local authority's named CME contact and where is its referral form?

[Data manager] makes New Pupil and Deletion returns to [local authority] and the attendance returns at the frequency the local authority sets. We remove a pupil from the admission register only on the grounds in regulation 9 of the 2024 Regulations. If a pupil is absent and we cannot establish where they are, we make reasonable enquiries ourselves, then work with [local authority]'s children missing education team ([contact]) and refer promptly.

## Publishing and reviewing this policy

_Make sure everyone can find the policy and that it stays current._

**Must include:**

- Publish the policy on the school website, send it to parents when pupils join, and remind parents of it at the start of each school year and when it is updated. _(Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024, Chapter 2, para 29)_
- Review and update the policy as necessary, seeking the views of pupils and parents. _(Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024, Chapter 2, para 30)_
- A trust-wide policy is allowed, but it should be tailored to each school's needs and barriers identified from its own data. _(Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024, Chapter 3, para 77)_

**Questions to answer:**

- How will you gather pupil and parent views before the next review (survey, parent forum, school council)?

This policy was approved by [governing board / trust board] on [date] and will be reviewed by [date]. It is published at [web address] and shared with every family when their child joins and at the start of each school year. Accessible or translated versions are available from [contact].

## Checklist

- [ ] Register closing time is stated, is the same for every session and is no more than 30 minutes after the register opens.
- [ ] All eight minimum items in para 26 are covered (expectations, champion, contacts, daily processes, incentives, data strategy, persistent/severe absence strategy, penalty notice framework).
- [ ] MIS set up so register amendments record original entry, new entry, reason, date and who made it.
- [ ] Arrangements in place to provide pupil attendance information to DfE on request (state-funded schools); the guidance says sharing directly from the MIS is the easiest way.
- [ ] Targeting Support Meeting dates agreed with the local authority School Attendance Support Team.
- [ ] Local authority's named CME contact and referral process recorded in the policy.
- [ ] Attendance training in all-staff CPD and induction, with extra training for staff with an attendance role.

## Watch out

- The sources date from August 2024 (attendance guidance and summary table) and September 2025 (children missing education). As of 4 October 2026, check GOV.UK for a newer edition of Working together to improve school attendance and for any changes to registration or children-not-in-school duties from later legislation before adopting this policy.
- Penalty notice amounts (£160/£80) and the 10-sessions-in-10-weeks threshold come from the 2024 regulations and National Framework; check they are still current and read your local authority's Local Code of Conduct, which can differ in detail.
- Do not invent attendance codes or old code letters: the 2024 Regulations introduced a revised set of codes (e.g. C1, C2, J1, K). Use the code list in chapter 8 of the current guidance.
- A common pitfall is a 'blanket' penalty notice policy (always issue or never issue). The guidance says each case at the threshold must be considered individually (para 181).
- Deleting a pupil from roll for any reason outside regulation 9 (e.g. a parent's verbal 'we're moving abroad' without the grounds being met) risks off-rolling; follow chapter 7 and the children missing education guidance.
- The summary table refers to Ofsted's 'behaviour and attitudes judgement'. Ofsted's inspection framework has changed since August 2024, so check the current Ofsted wording before quoting it to governors.

## Based on

- Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024 — Required policy contents (para 26), registers, leave of absence, day-to-day processes, data, SEND and health, governance, penalty notice framework and local authority returns.
- Working Together to Improve School Attendance — 2024 summary table responsibilities august — Who does what at each level of absence (parents, school, governors, local authority), used for the roles and escalation sections.
- Attendance: toolkit for communicating with families — How to communicate attendance to parents: lessons missed rather than percentages, named contacts, choosing the channel.
- Children Missing Education — summary responsibilities cme guidance 2025 — School expectations for pupils at risk of becoming children missing education: enquiries, referral to the home local authority's CME team.
- Children Missing Education — cme policy procedures checklist — What the local authority should give schools (named CME contact, referral process), so the policy can point to it.

Source: UK Curriculum Digital Centre, iFairy CIC — /v2/templates/attendance-policy