Summary statistics for schools in Scotland no. 8: 2017 edition

Results of the annual pupil census, annual teacher census, and data on early learning and childcare, school estates, attendance, absence and exclusions.


Chapter 7: Attendance and absence

  • 93.3% attendance in 2016/17, down from 93.7% in 2014/15

Schools record information on pupils attendance and absence from school and the reasons for this. This information is used to monitor pupil engagement and also to ensure pupils safety and wellbeing by following up on pupils who do not attend school. The Scottish Government published detailed guidance in 2007 on promoting good attendance at school and effective management of absenteeism (see: http://www.gov.scot/Publications/2007/12/05100056/0).

Table 7.1 shows school attendance, absence and temporary exclusion rates over the period 2010/11 to 2016/17. Information on attendance and absence was not collected in 2011/12, 2013/14 or 2015/16, as this data is now collected only once every two years.

Variations in recording practice of reasons for absence, between local authorities and over time, means that values and comparisons for certain detailed absence reasons, sickness and truancy in particular, are not reliable. The full breakdown of categories by local authority for 2016/17 is available in the supplementary tables. These data, and Table 7.1 below, do however show levels of absence as recorded by schools. Comparisons of overall attendance, overall absence and temporary exclusions are considered valid over time and between local authorities.

Since 2010/11 pupils' rate of attendance has remained relatively stable, increasing from 93.1 to 93.7 per cent in 2014/15 then decreasing to 93.3 per cent in 2016/17.

Table 7.1: Attendance and absence by detailed reason (1)

Percentage of half day openings

  2010/11 2012/13 2014/15 2016/17
Attendance 93.1 93.6 93.7 93.3
In school 91.1 91.7 91.6 91.1
Late 1.8 1.7 1.9 2.0
Work experience 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.1
Sickness with education provision 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
Authorised absence 4.9 4.5 4.3 4.2
Sickness without education provision 3.4 3.7 3.5 3.5
Very late 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
Authorised holidays 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1
Exceptional domestic circumstances 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.1
Other authorised 1.2 0.7 0.6 0.6
Unauthorised absence 1.9 1.8 2.0 2.4
Unauthorised holidays 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.7
Unexplained absence, including truancy 1.3 1.2 1.3 1.5
Exceptional domestic circumstances 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
Other unauthorised 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.2
All absences (authorised and unauthorised) 6.8 6.4 6.3 6.6
Temporary exclusion 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.0

(1) Detailed absence reasons will be affected by differing reporting practices across local authorities and over time. Overall absence and attendance are comparable.

Table 7.2 shows the 2016/17 national attendance rate across each sector broken down by gender, ethnicity, additional support needs and the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation (SIMD, 20% most deprivation versus 20% least deprivation).

Pupils with additional support needs in mainstream schools had a lower attendance rate than pupils with no additional support needs, with the difference being greater in secondary school.

Pupils living in areas with higher levels of deprivation had lower attendance rates, with the effect being greater in secondary and special school. In secondary schools, pupils living in areas associated with most deprivation (based on lowest 20 per cent of the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation 2016 (SIMD)) had an attendance rate 6.6 percentage points lower than the pupils living in areas associated with least deprivation.

Table 7.2: Attendance by pupil characteristic

Percentage of half day openings

  Primary Secondary Special Total
All Pupils 94.9 91.2 90.3 93.3
Gender
Male 94.9 91.3 90.3 93.4
Female 94.9 91.0 90.2 93.3
Ethnicity
White Scottish 95.1 91.1 90.2 93.3
White non-Scottish 94.1 90.8 90.3 93.0
Mixed or multiple ethnic groups 95.1 92.1 92.1 94.0
Asian 94.0 93.1 90.6 93.6
African/Black/Caribbean 96.5 95.0 94.8 96.0
All other ethnic groups 93.1 90.9 88.9 92.4
Not Disclosed / Not Known 94.1 89.3 89.1 92.8
Additional Support Needs (1)
Pupils with Additional Support needs 93.5 88.6 90.4 91.2
Pupils with no Additional support needs 95.3 92.1 # 94.1
SIMD
Lowest 20% of SIMD (Most deprived) 92.9 87.7 88.8 90.9
Highest 20% of SIMD (Least deprived) 96.7 94.3 93.4 95.6

(1) Pupils that were not matched to the Pupil Census have not been included.

Table 7.3 shows local attendance rates over the period 2010/11 to 2016/17.

In 2016/17 the percentage attendance in Scottish local authority schools ranged from 91.8 per cent to 95.3 per cent. This range of variation in attendance rates is consistent with the preceding years.

Table 7.3: Average attendance

Percentage of half day openings

Local Authority 2010/11 2012/13 2014/15 2016/17
Aberdeen City 93.0 93.0 93.5 93.6
Aberdeenshire 94.5 94.5 94.8 94.9
Angus 94.2 94.2 94.3 93.7
Argyll & Bute 93.7 94.3 94.2 93.7
Clackmannanshire 93.6 93.4 93.3 92.9
Dumfries & Galloway 94.4 94.2 94.5 94.2
Dundee City 92.0 92.3 92.4 92.3
East Ayrshire 93.0 93.4 93.4 93.0
East Dunbartonshire 94.6 95.2 95.3 95.0
East Lothian 93.8 94.2 93.9 93.7
East Renfrewshire 95.2 95.5 95.6 95.3
Edinburgh, City of 93.0 93.9 94.1 93.9
Na h-Eileanan Siar 93.9 93.9 94.9 95.2
Falkirk 93.4 93.8 93.6 93.1
Fife 92.6 93.0 93.5 93.0
Glasgow City 91.3 92.6 92.8 92.5
Highland 92.8 93.0 93.2 93.4
Inverclyde 92.9 93.4 93.0 92.5
Midlothian 93.0 93.2 93.0 92.6
Moray 93.9 94.2 94.1 94.0
North Ayrshire 93.2 93.5 93.3 92.6
North Lanarkshire 92.1 92.9 92.8 91.8
Orkney Islands 93.1 93.8 94.2 94.6
Perth & Kinross 93.8 94.0 93.9 93.6
Renfrewshire 93.8 94.0 93.6 93.3
Scottish Borders 94.0 94.3 94.4 94.2
Shetland Islands 94.2 94.5 94.4 94.5
South Ayrshire 93.2 93.2 93.2 93.2
South Lanarkshire 93.2 93.8 93.9 93.4
Stirling 92.5 94.1 94.4 94.1
West Dunbartonshire 92.3 93.3 92.7 91.8
West Lothian 93.7 93.9 93.9 93.3
Grant Aided (1) 95.8 96.9 96.8 97.1

(1) Includes Jordanhill the mainstream grant-aided school only. Grant-aided special schools are not included in the collection.

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