A concise briefing on absence trends in the 2026/25 academic year, highlighting falling overall absence but rising severe absence and persistent inequalities
The Department for Education’s analysis for the academic year 2026/25 shows a mixed picture: overall and persistent absence fell, while severe absence edged up. The national overall absence rate was 6.78% in 2026/25, down from 7.15% the year before but still well above pre-pandemic levels of 4.73% in 2018/19.
One session equals half a day so the absence rate expresses missed sessions as a share of possible sessions. Across terms the national absence rate rose from 6.38% in autumn to 6.92% in spring and 7.15% in summer, driven largely by increases in unauthorised absence late in the year.
Key national trends and reasons for absence
Illness remained the single largest cause of missed sessions, accounting for 3.22% of possible sessions in 2026/25 (down from 3.46%). Both authorised and unauthorised absence declined year-on-year: authorised fell by 0.20 percentage points to 4.48% and unauthorised by 0.17 points to 2.30%.
The unauthorised other category was 1.56% (down from 1.70%), while unauthorised holidays represented 0.48% and authorised other 0.40%. New coding guidance introduced at the start of 2026/25 removed the possibility of authorising term-time holidays and added codes for attendance at interviews, regulated performances and temporary part-time timetables, which affected how some absences are classified.
Persistent and severe absence: definitions and patterns
A pupil is classed as persistently absent when they miss 10% or more of possible sessions and as severely absent when they miss 50% or more. In 2026/25 about 1.34 million enrolments (18.14%) were persistently absent, down from 1.49 million (19.95%) in 2026/24 but higher than 10.86% in 2018/19. Around 176,000 enrolments (2.39%) were severely absent, a slight rise from 171,000 (2.30%) the previous year and markedly above the 0.85% seen in 2018/19. Termly trends mirror the overall pattern: persistent absence rose from 17.79% in autumn to 20.06% in spring and 21.72% in summer, while severe absence peaked nationally at 2.55% in the summer term.
School type differences
Absence fell across all school types compared with 2026/24: primary schools from 5.53% to 5.20%, secondary from 8.89% to 8.44% and special schools from 13.01% to 12.76%. Both authorised and unauthorised absence decreased in primary and secondary settings; in special schools authorised absence dropped but unauthorised absence rose slightly. Severe absence rates varied by sector: primary severe absence was highest in autumn (0.89%), while secondary and special schools saw their highest severe rates in summer (4.31% and 7.34% respectively).
Who is most affected: pupil characteristics and transitions
Certain pupil groups continue to experience substantially higher absence. Pupils eligible for free school meals (FSM) had overall absence rates almost double those of pupils not eligible and were over two and a half times as likely to be persistently absent; FSM pupils remained more than three and a half times as likely to be severely absent. Pupils with special educational needs (SEN) — including those with an EHC plan — also showed higher absence: overall absence increased for pupils with an EHC plan in 2026/25 while it fell for those with SEN support and for pupils with no identified SEN. The gap between pupils with SEN and those without widened, with SEN pupils more than one and a half times as likely to miss sessions overall and almost four times as likely to be severely absent.
Year groups and transitions
Absence generally rises with age. Year 11 recorded the highest rates: overall 10.31%, persistent 27.22% and severe 4.94%. In primary, Year 1 and below had the highest overall and persistent rates. Transition analysis shows the increase in absence between year groups is smaller this year than last: for example, the jump from Year 7 to Year 8 was +1.16 percentage points (2026/24 to 2026/25), down from +1.50 pp the year before. Other secondary transitions similarly narrowed, while primary transitions continue to show drops in absence when pupils move up the key stages.
Demographics, regions and alternative provision
Ethnic groups with the highest overall absence in 2026/25 were Irish Traveller (21.45%) and Gypsy/Roma (17.38%), while Chinese (2.91%) and Black African (3.80%) pupils had the lowest rates. Females had marginally higher absence than males. Young carers saw reductions in overall and persistent absence but still had rates over one and a half times those of pupils with no young carer status and were almost twice as likely to be persistently absent. For pupils previously in care, those who left under a child arrangements order had the highest absence (overall 9.38%, persistent 26.68%), while adopted children had the lowest (6.16% and 13.52% respectively); these figures rely on parental self-declaration to schools.
Regional patterns and alternative provision
Regionally, London recorded the lowest overall and severe absence (6.29% and 1.63%) and the East Midlands the lowest persistent absence (17.34%). The North East had the highest overall and persistent absence (7.17% and 19.37%), while Yorkshire and the Humber had the highest severe absence (2.86%). All regions saw falls in overall and persistent absence from 2026/24 to 2026/25, but severe absence rose everywhere. In state-funded alternative provision (AP) the overall absence rate increased to 42.85% (from 42.50%), with authorised absence up and unauthorised absence down.
Further datasets, regional breakdowns and tables are available in the release data catalogue and the table tool, including filters by SEN, FSM, year group and geography. For enquiries about these statistics contact the Attendance and exclusions statistics team at [email protected]. Media queries should go to the press office on 020 7783 8300. Public enquiries to the Department for Education are on 0370 000 2288 (Monday to Friday, 9.30am to 5.30pm, closed on bank holidays).
