The following section looks at absence rates in the combined autumn and spring terms by pupil characteristics, including free school meal eligibility, SEN provision, year group, sex, and ethnicity. Data for unclassified or unknown characteristics are not presented in the tables due to low numbers, which lead to volatile rates.
Absence rates continued to be higher for pupils eligible for free school meals (FSM) and pupils with special educational needs (SEN)
Free school meals (FSM) eligibility
Overall and persistent absence rates decreased for both pupils eligible and not eligible for FSM across autumn and spring terms 2024/25, compared to the previous autumn and spring terms. The rate of overall absence for pupils eligible for FSM continued to be almost twice that of pupils not eligible.
Pupils eligible for FSM are over two and a half times as likely to be persistently absent as pupils not eligible for FSM. Persistent absence decreased for both pupils eligible and not eligible for FSM since 2023/24
Severe absence increased slightly for both pupils eligible and not eligible for FSM. Pupils eligible for FSM remain over three and half times more likely to be severe absentees than those not eligible for FSM.
Special educational needs (SEN)
Compared to the combined autumn and spring terms in 2023/24, overall absence for pupils with an education, health and care (EHC) plan increased across autumn and spring 2024/25. Overall absence rates for pupil with SEN support and pupils with no identified SEN decreased.
The gap has continued to increase between pupils with SEN (EHC plans and SEN support combined) and those with no identified SEN. Across the combined autumn and spring terms, the overall absence rate for all pupils with SEN was just under twice that of pupils with no identified SEN.
Persistent absence rates decreased across all cohorts, regardless of SEN provision, compared to combined autumn and spring terms 2023/24. However, the gap between pupils with SEN and those with no identified SEN continued to increase.
Severe absence increased for pupils with EHC plans and SEN support but decreased for pupils with no identified SEN, widening the gap with SEN pupils four and a half times more likely to be a severe absentee than pupils with no identified SEN.
Year group
Generally, absence rates tend to increase as age increases. The highest overall absence and severe absence rates were in year 11 at 9.82% and 4.83%, respectively. The highest persistent absence rate was in year 10 at 25.06%. These patterns are consistent with combined autumn and spring terms 2023/24.
In the primary phase, absence rates were highest in Year 1 and below, where overall absence does not show a decrease compared to the previous combined autumn and spring terms - unlike all other year groups.
The overall absence rate increases most between year 7 and year 8
As above, generally, absence rates increase as year group increases. In this section we look at the change of absence rates between year groups over different academic terms. For example, comparing the absence rate of year 7s in 2023/24 to the absence rate of year 8s in 2024/25.
Across autumn and spring terms 2023/24, the overall absence rate in year 7 was 6.40%. The difference between this absence rate, and the absence rate of those in year 8 in 2024/25 was 1.30 percentage points (pp) (7.70%). This is smaller than the 1.55 pp increase between year 7s in 2022/23 and year 8s in 2023/24.
For most secondary year groups, the size of the increase in absence rates has shrunk for transitions between 2023/24 and 2024/25 compared to transitions between 2022/23 and 2023/24:
| Transition | Change from 2022/23 to 2023/24 | Change from 2023/24 to 2024/25 |
|---|
| Year 6 to year 7 | +0.40 pp | +0.25 pp |
| Year 7 to year 8 | +1.55 pp | +1.30 pp |
| Year 8 to year 9 | +0.91 pp | +0.55 pp |
| Year 9 to year 10 | +0.51 pp | +0.21 pp |
| Year 10 to year 11 | -0.01 pp | -0.01 pp |
During transitions between primary year groups, the absence rate drops. The largest decreases are seen between year 2 to year 3. However, the size of the decreases in absence rate during these transitions has shrunk when comparing the transitions between 2023/24 to 2024/25 and the transitions between 2022/23 to 2023/24:
| Transition | Change from 2022/23 to 2023/24 | Change from 2023/24 to 2024/25 |
|---|
| Year 2 to year 3 | -0.86 pp | -0.40 pp |
| Year 3 to year 4 | -0.44 pp | -0.23 pp |
| Year 4 to year 5 | -0.29 pp | -0.19 pp |
| Year 5 to year 6 | -0.16 pp | -0.11 pp |
Ethnicity
Across autumn and spring terms 2024/25, Irish Traveller and Gypsy/Roma pupils had the highest overall absence rates at 20.32% and 16.58%, respectively, while Chinese and Black African pupils had the lowest at 2.87% and 3.70%, respectively. Irish Traveller and Gypsy/Roma pupils also had the highest persistent and severe absence rates, continuing trends seen in previous years.
Sex
Males continued to have slightly lower overall, persistent, and severe absence rates than females.
Ethnicity by FSM eligibility
Further information on absence rates by ethnicity and FSM eligibility is available in the data catalogue, or you can create your own tables using the table tool.
