School attendance 4 to 11

Information for parents, carers and professionals about school attendance

Advice for parents and carers

• How to help your child have good attendance

  Primary school headteacher Dave McPartlin shares the importance of good school attendance and the best ways you can help your child achieve it.

• Attendance support

  Why attendance is important, what is good attendance, how it is calculated, your duty as a parent or carer and attendance interventions. 

• Guide for parents on school attendance

  Short guide to help parents understand how they can work with their school and local authority to support their children to attend school and get the right support.

• Is my child too ill for schoo1?

  NHS guidelines to decide whether or not to keep your child off school when they are unwell. 

Resources for professionals

• Education Endowment Foundation: Strengthening School-Family Communication

  Learn how effective communication can help schools and families to work together, improve attendance and build trust.

• Education Endowment Foundation: Supporting Attendance

  Designed to help school leaders and attendance teams to increase pupil attendance.

• Improving Attendance

  Watch practical videos from the Department from Education and partners on using data, collaboration and evidence-based strategies to improve school attendance.

• Mental health issues affecting a pupil's attendance: guidance for schools

  Summary of responsibilities where a mental health issue is affecting attendance and examples of effective practice (GOV.UK).

• Education for children with health needs who cannot attend school

  How local authorities must meet their duty to ensure children with health needs receive a good education (GOV.UK)

• Working together to improve school attendance

  Guidance for schools, academy trusts, governing bodies and local authorities on maintaining high levels of school attendance, including roles and responsibilities (GOV.UK).

• Attendance toolkit for schools

  Help schools tackle absence by spotting the causes and using proven ways to boost attendance.

• Elective Home Education 

  Guidance and procedures for Bristol City Council Elective Home Education.

• Bristol City Council Attendance and Education Welfare Service

  A specialist service helping schools and families to improve attendance and outcomes.