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“Disadvantaged pupils are more likely to miss school. The latest national statistics showed 33.6% of pupils who were eligible for free school meals were persistently absent in Autumn 2021, compared to 20.0% of pupils who were not eligible.”
Persistent absence and support for disadvantaged pupils Inquiry
“As Children’s Commissioner, I have made school attendance one of my top priorities because children tell me how much they value their education and want to be in school. Every day counts: when children miss school, it’s not just about missing lessons, it’s also about losing valuable moments spent with their friends and teachers.”
Rachel De Souza, Children’s Commissioner
“Tackling attendance is my number one priority. We want all our children to have the best start in life because we know that attending school is vital to a child’s wellbeing, development, and attainment as well as impact future career success.”
Gillian Keegan, Education Secretary, February 2024
“The pupils with the highest attainment at the end of key stage 2 and key stage 4 have higher rates of attendance over the key stage compared to those with the lowest attainment.
Working together to improve school attendance guidance
“Persistent absence impacts attainment and children’s safety, with 90% of young offenders persistently absent.”
Opportunity for all – strong schools with great teachers for your child white paper
At a time where schools are continuing to face significant challenges in maintaining high attendance, the new proposals for changes to Ofsted inspections include attendance being introduced as a new evaluation area. National data shows that absence stood at 7.1 per cent last academic year, up from between 4 and 5 per cent before the pandemic.
As more students transition between schools and families face new pressures, ensuring consistent attendance has become more complex than ever. This conference addresses these issues head-on, providing school leaders with practical strategies to tackle the root causes of absence. With attendance being a critical indicator of student success, it’s crucial to implement approaches that promote not just compliance but genuine engagement with education.
The growing awareness of the link between mental health and school attendance adds another layer of complexity to the challenge. Anxiety-based school avoidance and emotional barriers often go unnoticed until absenteeism becomes chronic. By attending this session, you’ll gain insights into how to identify early warning signs of disengagement and mental health struggles, as well as how to build emotional resilience within students. The conference also explores how leadership roles, such as the Attendance Champion, can inspire whole-school change, alongside practical case studies from schools that have successfully turned attendance around through innovative solutions.
Who should attend?
Headteachers, Assistant Heads, Deputy Heads, Attendance Leads, Heads of Year, Education Welfare Officers, School Business Managers, Pastoral Leads, SENCOs and Designated Safeguarding Leads
This conference will enable you to:
Ensure you are completely up to date with all of the current and proposed changes in the area of school attendance
Understand the proposed changes to Ofsted inspection and the impact on how attendance will be inspected
Be prepared and get your new school attendance policy in place
Understand the governments expectations in relation to data sharing
Improve your data recording procedures and put in place clear practices on regular analysis to allow for
identification of concerning patterns
Devise a plan for reengaging and supporting pupils who disengaged
Think strategically about school attendance so that you can embed a whole school culture that promotes the
benefits of high attendance levels
Understand the role of the attendance champion and the impact it could have for your school
Consider the additional support needed for disadvantaged pupils to improve their attendance rates
Work effectively to improve attendance for children with mental health barriers to attendance
Consider how you engage with parents and the community on school attendance, looking at problem areas for 2025 and how to approach them
