Support before assumptions
Attendance data tells you what is happening—not why
Absence can have several overlapping causes. Hold the expectation of attendance while listening carefully for the barriers that make it difficult. A supportive approach is not a soft option: it gives the school better information and a more useful plan.
Three useful first actions
- Check the pattern across days, lessons, places and known events.
- Speak with the pupil calmly and record their words accurately.
- Agree one named lead, immediate support and a review date.
Step 1
Understand the barrier and the pattern
Bring together attendance information, the pupil’s account, family knowledge and what staff have noticed. Look beyond the overall percentage.
Step 2
Listen to the pupil without making promises
Choose a trusted adult and a time when the pupil is regulated enough to talk. Use short, open questions. Avoid turning the conversation into an interrogation or arguing about whether their worry is reasonable.
“I’ve noticed getting into school has been difficult. Which part feels hardest, and what might make it a little more manageable?”
Do
- explain what will happen with the information
- reflect back what you have understood
- record facts, the pupil’s words and agreed actions
- ask who they feel safe speaking to
Avoid
- labels such as lazy, defiant or attention-seeking
- promising confidentiality
- offering a large plan before understanding the problem
- making the pupil repeat a difficult account unnecessarily
Step 3
Work with the family—not around them
Contact home early. Describe the pattern without blame, ask what they are seeing and be clear about the shared aim. Families may be exhausted, worried or defensive after repeated difficult mornings; calm, consistent contact helps.
- Use one main school contact where possible.
- Agree how and when updates will be shared.
- Separate support conversations from formal warnings where practical.
- Record family views, barriers, offers of support and responses.
Step 4
Make support small, specific and reviewable
Choose actions that respond to the identified barrier. Possible examples include:
Step 5
Write a plan people can actually follow
Keep these six points clear
Record contact, support offered, agreed actions and impact using your setting’s systems. If absence increases, the level of support and multi-agency involvement may also need to increase.
SEND and health
Involve the right people early
- Consider whether unmet or emerging SEND may be contributing and involve the SENCO where appropriate.
- Review existing support plans, healthcare information and reasonable adjustments.
- Do not wait for a diagnosis before responding to an evident barrier the school can reasonably address.
- Work with relevant health, local-authority and family services when needs go beyond the school’s role.
Safeguarding
Absence may be part of a wider concern
If information suggests abuse, neglect, exploitation, bullying, risk outside the home or another safeguarding concern, follow your school’s safeguarding and child-protection procedures and speak to the designated safeguarding lead. Do not investigate the concern yourself or promise secrecy.
If someone is in immediate danger, call 999.
Read our safeguarding statementWhen formal attendance action may be needed
In England, schools and local authorities have statutory attendance responsibilities. Formal support and legal intervention may become appropriate when voluntary support has not worked, has not been engaged with or is not appropriate. Decisions must follow current statutory guidance, local arrangements and your school’s policy; this page is not legal advice.
Guidance used for this page
Reviewed 7 September 2026. The statutory guidance below applies to England. Staff must use their school’s current policies, procedures and professional advice.