School is more than schoolwork
Attendance information for parents
The lessons your child learns at school go far beyond academics. The friendships they build, the challenges they work through, and the everyday experiences they have teach them skills for life.
We know it isn't always easy getting your child to school. But encouraging them to go, even during difficult moments, builds their resilience.
School is where they develop social skills, build confidence, and learn that working through challenges can be rewarding. When children attend regularly, they're more likely to feel connected to their school community and their peers.
Impact of attendance
| Attendance during one school year | Equals days absent | Approximately this many weeks absent | Which means this many lessons missed |
|---|
| 95% |
9 |
2 |
50 |
| 90% |
19 |
4 |
100 |
| 85% |
29 |
6 |
150 |
| 80% |
38 |
8 |
200 |
Missing even one day each week means a child is missing out on 20% of their education, making it harder to keep up with classwork and maintain friendships.
In Wigan, part of Greater Manchester, we are committed to ensuring that all children and young people across our borough get the best start in life and will thrive, through the Greater Manchester Strategy (external link).
If you need help with attendance
If you need any help or support with your child’s attendance, the first step is to talk to your child’s school. Schools have support available and want to work in partnership with you. Information on who you can contact for help, including the school’s senior leader responsible for attendance, can be found in the school’s attendance policy on its website or available in hard copy from the school.
What schools do to support attendance
The Department for Education requires schools to:
- Build strong relationships and work jointly with families, listening to and understanding barriers to attendance and working in partnership with families to remove them
- Develop and maintain a whole school culture that promotes the benefits of high attendance
- Have a clear school attendance policy which all staff, pupils, and parents understand
- Have effective day-to-day processes in place, to follow up with any absences
- Regularly monitor and analyse attendance and absence data to identify pupils or cohorts that require support with attendance and put effective strategies in place
- Share information and work collaboratively with other schools in the area, local authorities, and other partners where the pupil’s absence is at risk of becoming persistent and severe
- Be particularly mindful of pupils absent from school due to mental or physical ill health, or they have special educational needs and/or disabilities, and provide them with additional support.
Understanding your responsibilities
The law requires that all children of compulsory school age receive full-time education. Where a child is enrolled at a school, parents and carers are responsible for making sure that their child attends school regularly.
As a parent or carer, you play the most important role in your child's education and in supporting their attendance.
From starting nursery, parents should teach their children the importance of going to school on time every day. Where there are difficulties, parents should speak to the child's school at the earliest opportunity.
Illness-related absences
Illness is the biggest single reason for school absence. While some absences due to illness are unavoidable, the NHS provides clear guidance on when children are well enough to attend school (external link).
Most mild illnesses – such as a runny nose, sore throat, or slight cough – do not usually require time off school, unless your child has a temperature. Children with diarrhoea or vomiting should stay away from school until they have not been sick or had diarrhoea for at least 2 days (48 hours).
Where a child is too unwell to attend school, parents must let the school know before the start of the school day.
Medical appointments
Where a child has a medical appointment, parents should get agreement from the school in advance for a leave of absence. Where possible, parents should make necessary medical appointments outside of school hours.
If your child has a medical appointment during the school day and is well enough, they should go to school before the appointment and return afterwards. They can attend the appointment in their school uniform. This helps minimise time away from learning and keeps routines consistent.
Top tips on how to help your child manage back-to-school worries from clinical psychologist Dr Nihara Krause
- Rebuild routine early. Children thrive on routine and during the school holidays, sleep patterns, mealtimes, and daily structure become looser. This is completely normal, but this shift can make the return to school feel overwhelming. Start resetting sleep schedules three to five days before school begins by moving bedtime and wake-up time earlier in small steps. Reintroduce familiar routines such as reading before bed, laying out clothes, or having breakfast at the table. Limit screens for at least an hour before bed, as overstimulation can affect sleep quality.
- Plan a calm and structured first morning back. Keep mornings calm by preparing as much as possible the night before (uniforms, packed lunches, school bags, and PE kits) to reduce stress and set a positive tone for the day. Aim to wake up 10 - 15 minutes earlier on the first day back so there’s no need to rush. Create a warm, steady routine with breakfast together, a quiet chat, and a moment to check in on how your child is feeling. Maintaining a relaxed tone yourself also helps, as children often 'borrow' their emotional cues from adults. A smooth, unhurried morning lowers stress and helps children walk into school feeling steadier and more confident.
- Talk openly and validate feelings. Communication is key, so try to keep checking in with your child in the run up to the return to school. Listen carefully to what is on their mind, and help them break their concerns into smaller, manageable steps you can work through together. This helps them feel supported and understood. Don’t forget to highlight the positives of returning to school like seeing friends, their favourite lessons and enjoyable routines like after school activities. Normalise their feelings and explain it’s very common to feel a little uneasy shifting routines from holiday mode to back-to-school.
Term-time holidays
Parents should avoid taking term time holidays. In line with Department for Education guidance schools may request the local authority issue an Education Penalty Notice (fine).
Enforcement action and fines
The Council takes poor school attendance very seriously, and you could get a penalty notice or be prosecuted if your child is missing school without authorisation.
What support is available to parents?
In the first instance parents and carers should speak to their child’s school so that they can provide support.
If your child is absent from school, please communicate clearly with the school and report every absence.
A meeting can be held with the school to discuss and ensure an appropriate plan of support is in place to meet your child’s needs.
We have also co-produced, with our schools and wider partners, the Wigan Attendance Strategic Plan.
As well as schools, there are a lot of services who work with children and families and who can provide information, advice, and support. For more information please visit:
Additional resources
Additional government guidance on support and parents’ responsibilities on school attendance: Resources for families - Children's Commissioner for England (external link).
Further government information on improving school attendance: Why school attendance matters, and what we’re doing to improve it – The Education Hub (external link).