Overview
- Department for Education data released Thursday shows 2.39% of pupils were severely absent in 2024/25, a record share defined as missing at least half of sessions.
- Overall absence fell to 6.78% and persistent absence dropped to 18.14%, which means missing 10% or more of sessions, with about 225,000 more children attending almost every day.
- The attendance gap widened for disadvantaged and SEND pupils, with a 5.19-point gap for free school meal pupils and larger gaps for those with education, health and care plans or on SEN support, and the increase in severe absence was mainly driven by pupils with EHCPs.
- Education charity Impetus says the current pace would take five years to return persistent absence to pre-pandemic levels and nine years for disadvantaged pupils.
- The government points to major SEND reforms, 93 attendance and behaviour hubs supporting about 3,000 schools, and a target of 20 million more school days by 2028/29.