Government Data Show Unauthorised School Absences Rise, Nearly Double Pre-Pandemic Rate

Children walk home from Altrincham C.E. aided primary school after the government's policy to close all schools from today owing to the COVID-19 pandemic in Altrincham, UK, on March 20, 2020. (Clive Brunskill /Getty Images)

The number of unauthorised absences from schools in England increased last year and is nearly double the rate from before the COVID-19 pandemic, according to government figures.

Data released from the Department for Education (DfE) on Thursday show that unauthorised absences rose from 2.1 percent in school year 2021/22 to 2.4 percent in 2022/23.

This figure is nearly double the rate during 2018/19 (1.4 percent), the last school year before the pandemic and lockdowns, where the government ordered schools to close.

Unauthorised absences are when children are absent without the school’s permission, such as parents taking their children on holiday during term time.

There are a few instances where children can miss school with permission, including illness, because of religious observances, or exceptional circumstances.

Unauthorised absences can incur a fine of £60, rising to £120 if not paid within 21 days. The DfE has said that from autumn 2024, these charges will increase to £80, rising to £160 with non-payment, in a bid to return attendance to pre-lockdown levels.

National Absence Rates

Overall, national absence rates (authorised and unauthorised) had decreased from 7.6 percent in 2021/22 to 7.4 percent in 2022/23.

However, this is still higher than the pre-lockdown level of 4.7 percent.

Illness was the top reason for missing school, decreasing from 4.4 percent in 2021/22 to 3.7 percent in 2022/23.

The unauthorised holiday rate rose from 0.4 percent to 0.5 percent last year, while unauthorised “other reasons” increased from 1.4 percent to 1.7 percent.

Unauthorised “other reasons” was the second-highest category for absences after illness.

Absence rates vary across terms, from 7.5 percent in the autumn term, 7.0 percent in the spring, and increasing to 7.6 percent in the summer.

Severely Absent Rates Increase

The data also revealed the rates of those determined to be “severely absent” and “persistently absent.” Severe absence is where a child misses more than 50 percent of school sessions, while persistent absence is where a child misses 10 percent or more school sessions. One “session” is equal to half a day.

Severe absence rates went up from 1.7 percent to 2 percent, with more than 150,000 pupils in England deemed severely absent in 2022/23.

More than one-fifth (21.2 percent) of pupils—around 1.57 million children—were persistently absent last year. This is down slightly (22.5 percent) on 2021/22, but still nearly double the pre-pandemic rate of 10.9 percent in 2018/19.

A young girl paints a picture of herself on the school window as children of key workers take part in school activities at Oldfield Brow Primary School in Altrincham, England, during the first COVID-19 lockdown on April 8, 2020. (Christopher Furlong/Getty Images)

440,000 Fewer Children Persistently Absent

Paul Whiteman, general secretary at the National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT), said that school leaders are “pleased to see the number of children coming back into school is moving in the right direction.”

“However, absence rates are still significantly higher than before COVID and much more needs to be done to bring them down,“ Mr. Whiteman said, noting that causes of absence can result from illness ”including mental health issues, to poverty and other challenges at home.”

“If the Government is serious about getting more pupils back into the classroom, there must be a significant bolstering of funding for the services that support schools including children’s social care, and mental health,” the NAHT general secretary added.

In response to the figures, a DfE spokesperson said that due to the department’s “package of wide-ranging reforms designed to support schools to improve attendance,” there has been “rapid improvement” with “440,000 fewer children persistently absent or not attending last year alone.”

“We know that some children face greater barriers to attendance, like pupils with long term medical conditions or special educational needs and disabilities, which is why our guidance ensures schools work with pupils and families to respond to each pupil’s individual needs,” the spokesperson added.

Too Anxious for School

Last year, the Centre for Social Justice think tank analysed DfE school absence data and found that the number of severely absent children had increased sharply in each term since the pandemic.

The report, titled “Lost and not found,” said that according to local authorities, primary school children who grew up during the school shutdown period were more likely to be anxious about leaving their parents and home.

Authors also noted that for older pupils, there is “a growing group of children who had previously attended school regularly before the pandemic but had since become extremely anxious.”

Journalist and author Harriet Sergeant told Lee Hall of NTD’s “British Thought Leaders” last month that many children “have had long term damage because of absence from schools” because of the lockdowns, noting the rise of so-called “ghost children”—pupils who have dropped off the school rolls.

She said that one school counsellor had found absences tend to fall into one of two categories: those that are “just too anxious to leave their room,” and those that are “so angry and aggressive they’re out on the street, they’re joining gangs, and they’ve just dropped out completely.”

PA Media contributed to this report.