Information for schools - supporting attendance

Statutory guidance

Please visit links to statutory attendance guidance published on GOV.UK by the Department for Education and current information on addressing pupil absence in schools:

• Working together to improve school attendance
• School attendance and absence
• Toolkit for schools, communicating with families to support attendance

The guidance is for:

• maintained schools
• academies
• independent schools
• local authorities

It is designed to:

• help schools, trusts, governing bodies and local authorities maintain high levels of school attendance.
• summarise the roles and responsibilities of parents and carers, schools, trusts, governing bodies and local authorities.
• summarise the support that should be provided to families, and to pupils who are persistently or severely absent, or at risk of becoming so
• provide details of the legal interventions available to schools and local authorities when attendance support does not work, is not engaged with or is not appropriate.
• provide details of what schools are required to record in their attendance and admission register.

Legal action on school attendance

We have a responsibility to ensure all statutory school age children, living in the area they cover, have education provision.

Parents and carers are responsible in law for making sure their children are in school or receiving a suitable education. This section contains information on the processes that we will follow if legal action needs to be taken in relation to a child’s poor attendance. This may involve prosecution.