BACKGROUND NOTES
Definitions
1. In 2007, the Scottish Government published new guidance which replaced Scottish Executive Circular 5/03 on the management of attendance and absence in Scottish schools. Included, Engaged and Involved:
- Clarifies classification and recording requirements
- Addresses wider issues of promotion and management of attendance
- Strengthens links between absence and protection of children
Copies of the guidance will be provided to local authorities and to schools shortly. Electronic copies are available from:
http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2007/12/05100056
2. Holidays taken during term time must be categorised as unauthorised absence. However, it is acceptable under exceptional circumstances for schools to authorise a family holiday during term time. Such circumstances may include a family holiday judged to be important to the wellbeing and cohesion of the family, following serious or terminal illness, bereavement or other traumatic events. It should not include such reasons as the availability of cheap holidays, the availability of desired accommodation, poor weather experienced during school holidays, holidays which overlap the beginning or end of term, or parental difficulty obtaining leave (with local judgement applied in cases where evidence is provided by the employer that it cannot accommodate leave during school holidays without serious consequences).
3. Pupils arriving late are marked as such, with a distinction made for those arriving in the second half of a morning or the second half of the afternoon. Where summary data is necessary, if a pupil has attended most of an opening it is counted as attendance, but if they have been absent for most of a session it is included as authorised absence. They are of course still separately identified as being late but present for some of the time in the schools' systems for management purposes. Schools were also given the possibility of including all late marks on a pupil's record as attendance, if it is deemed beneficial for encouraging attendance. The distinction is also used in judging attendance records of those receiving bursaries and allowances.
4. Further details can be obtained from the circular and addendum
http://www.scotland.gov.uk/library5/education/edc05-00.asp
http://www.scotland.gov.uk/library5/education/ac503a-00.asp
5. Prior to 2003/04, information was collected at school level, by stage up to S5, in the four categories: attendance, authorised absence, unauthorised absence due to temporary exclusion, other unauthorised absence. From 2003/04 information is collected at individual level, enabling linkage to pupil characteristics collected in the pupil census, and is collected in the wider range of attendance and absence categories published in this document.
Problems with the data
6. Information is received at pupil level and a unique pupil identifier ( UPN) was introduced in 2006. This should enable tracking of pupils who move school during the year. While the UPN has been implemented, there are some ongoing issues with its management. However, some linking of pupil records was achieved this year to create single attendance and absence records for the full school year. We expect improvement to continue in this area.
7. In those parts of the report where we count pupil numbers rather than attendances, to avoid double-counting of pupils who move school, we have included only those pupils who have been in a school for over half a year. In other analysis, where data has been linked to pupil characteristics from the pupil census, we are only able to use the attendance record from the original school. This was possible for 98 per cent of records, accounting for 99 per cent of possible attendance. The overall summary figures however are unaffected by this problem.
8. As stated in the introduction, several local authorities do not appear to be using the full range of absence categories and are recording most absences as "other authorised absence". This does not affect the summary attendance rates for these authorities. It does however affect the detailed categories of absence, both at local and national level.
9. We understand that some local authorities are using "other authorised absence" as the default for as yet unexplained absences. There is a danger that this incorrectly reduces their unauthorised absence rates. Therefore, all tables splitting absence by reason have been excluded from the main part of the publication and included in an annex for information only. Scottish Government will further consider comparability of the data and potentially, where appropriate, publish additional analyses on-line, based on a suitable sub-set of Scottish local authorities.
10. Information on free school meals ( FSM) collected at the 2007 pupil census by Glasgow City was discovered to be inconsistent with previous years. Therefore, where possible, these tables and charts have been replaced with tables based on the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation ( SIMD) relating to the data zones in which pupils live.
Coverage
11. Attendance and absence information is provided to the Scottish Government by the local authorities and managers of mainstream grant-aided schools. This report does not give information on attendance and absence in grant-aided special schools, independent schools or pre-school establishments.
12. The information shown for attendance and absence is for the academic year. Schools which closed during the 2007/08 session, and for which data was available, were included.
13. The attendance and absence of S6 pupils were excluded from some of the summary figures in earlier publications. However, S6 pupils have now been included in all analysis of attendance and absence.
Calculation
14. Percentages for authorised and unauthorised absence relate to the total number of possible attendances. For many schools this is 380 half-day sessions during the school year. However, all but two schools in the Lothians and Edinburgh and three schools in Highland operate 342 (longer) half-day sessions in the school year.
15. The local authority average is the average number of half-days authorised or unauthorised absence for all pupils in local authority schools only, based on a 380 half day year (i.e. scaled up for the Lothians and Edinburgh). The national average is the average number of half-days authorised or unauthorised absence for local authority and mainstream grant-aided schools in Scotland.
16. All percentages are rounded separately, figures may consequently not sum to 100 per cent.
17. Symbols used:
- = nil or rounds to nil
## = not applicable
General
18. This is a National Statistics publication. National Statistics are produced to high professional standards set out in the National Statistics Code of Practice. They undergo regular quality assurance reviews to ensure that they meet customer needs. They are produced free from any political interference.
19. The tables and charts are also available through the following link: http://www.scotland.gov.uk/stats/bulletins/00709
20. The report was edited by: Isabella de Wit and Venetia Haynes.
21. Public enquiries (non-media) about the information contained in this Statistical Publication Notice should be addressed to: Isabella de Wit, Education Analytical Services Division, Room 1-B, Victoria Quay, Edinburgh EH6 6QQ. Telephone 0131 244 0300 or e-mail school.stats@scotland.gsi.gov.uk.
22. Media enquiries about the information in this Statistical Publication Notice should be addressed to: Tom Whittles 0131 244 2530
11th December, 2008