Absence from school
Published
Contents
- 1. Navigate toMain facts and figures section
- 2. Navigate toThings you need to know section
- 3. Navigate to Overall absence by ethnicity section
- 4. Navigate to Overall absence by ethnicity and area section
- 5. Navigate to Overall absence by ethnicity and type of school section
- 6. Navigate to Persistent absence by ethnicity section
- 7. Navigate to Persistent absence by ethnicity and area section
- 8. Navigate to Persistent absence by ethnicity and type of school section
- 9. Navigate toData sources section
- 10. Navigate toDownload the data section
1. Main facts and figures
- in the 2020 to 2021 school year the overall absence rate – school sessions missed due to authorised and unauthorised absence – was 4.6%
- 12.1% of pupils missed 10% or more of their school sessions – known as ‘persistent absence’
- pupils from the traveller of Irish heritage and gypsy and Roma ethnic groups had the highest rates of overall absence and persistent absence – pupils from the Chinese and Indian ethnic groups had the lowest
- 21.3% of possible sessions in the 2020 to 2021 school year were recorded as not attending due to COVID-19 related circumstances – this includes pupils self-isolating and shielding, and classes or bubbles having to stay at home, but excludes illness.
- during national restrictions in spring term 2021, 57.5% of sessions were recorded as not attending due to COVID-19 related circumstances.
2. Things you need to know
What the data measures
The data shows absence rates from state-funded primary, secondary and special schools in England.
Data is based on pupil enrolment records rather than individual pupils. Some pupils may be counted more than once within the total enrolment figure, for example if they:
- moved schools during the academic year
- are registered in more than one school
Rates have been rounded to 1 decimal place.
How absence rates are calculated
The overall absence rate is the total number of authorised and unauthorised absences, as a percentage of the total number of possible sessions at school. There are usually 2 sessions in a school day, in the morning and afternoon.
The persistent absence rate is the total number of pupil enrolments who were persistently absent, as a percentage of all pupil enrolments. A pupil is persistently absent if they miss 10% or more of their possible sessions at school.
The ethnic groups used in the data
The data uses the ethnic groups from the 2001 Census with 2 exceptions:
- traveller of Irish heritage, and gypsy and Roma pupils are in 2 separate categories
- the Chinese ethnic group has its own category, rather than being part of the Asian ethnic group
For local authority data, percentages are shown for 6 ethnic groups as a whole:
- Asian
- black
- Chinese
- mixed
- white
- 'other'
This is to ensure that numbers are based on enough pupils to be reliable.
Methodology
21.3% of possible sessions in the 2020 to 2021 school year were recorded as not attending due to COVID-19 related circumstances – this includes pupils self-isolating and shielding, and classes or bubbles having to stay at home, but excludes illness. During national restrictions in spring term 2021, 57.5% of sessions were recorded as not attending due to COVID-19 related circumstances.
Read the detailed methodology document for the data.
Some of this data is based on very small numbers of pupils. Find out more about how group size affects the reliability of data.
In the data file
See Download the data for the total number of pupil enrolments in each local authority.
3. Overall absence by ethnicity
| Ethnicity | % | Sessions |
|---|---|---|
| All | 4.6 | 117,183,525 |
| Asian | 4.7 | 13,139,879 |
| Bangladeshi | 5.0 | 2,138,679 |
| Indian | 3.2 | 2,611,253 |
| Pakistani | 6.0 | 6,606,468 |
| Asian Other | 3.8 | 1,783,479 |
| Black | 3.8 | 5,323,173 |
| Black African | 3.3 | 3,142,694 |
| Black Caribbean | 5.4 | 1,378,936 |
| Black Other | 4.2 | 801,543 |
| Chinese | 2.1 | 238,438 |
| Mixed | 5.0 | 7,949,675 |
| Mixed White And Asian | 4.3 | 1,641,691 |
| Mixed White And Black African | 4.7 | 1,036,764 |
| Mixed White And Black Caribbean | 6.3 | 2,506,216 |
| Mixed Other | 4.6 | 2,765,004 |
| White | 4.6 | 85,728,791 |
| White British | 4.6 | 76,695,613 |
| White Irish | 5.5 | 352,601 |
| Gypsy, Roma | 15.0 | 1,225,310 |
| Irish Traveller | 19.1 | 361,920 |
| White Other | 4.2 | 7,093,347 |
| Other | 4.6 | 2,352,976 |
Download table data for ‘Overall absence by ethnicity’ (CSV) Source data for ‘Overall absence by ethnicity’ (CSV)
Summary of Absence from school Overall absence by ethnicity Summary
The data shows that:
- in the 2020 to 2021 school year, the overall absence rate was 4.6%
- pupils from the Chinese ethnic group had the lowest overall absence rate, missing 2.1% of their total school sessions
- traveller of Irish heritage (19.1%) and gypsy and Roma (15.0%) pupils had the highest overall absence rates
- white British pupils missed 4.6% of their total school sessions
4. Overall absence by ethnicity and area
| Local authority | All | Asian | Black | Chinese | Mixed | White | Other |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| % | % | % | % | % | % | % | |
| All - England | 4.6 | 4.7 | 3.8 | 2.1 | 5.0 | 4.6 | 4.6 |
| Barking And Dagenham | 4.8 | 4.7 | 3.2 | 2.5 | 5.6 | 5.9 | 4.7 |
| Barnet | 3.9 | 3.5 | 4.3 | 2.0 | 4.3 | 3.8 | 4.4 |
| Barnsley | 4.8 | 4.0 | 3.2 | 3.0 | 4.5 | 4.8 | 4.8 |
| Bath And North East Somerset | 4.3 | 4.0 | 5.3 | 1.6 | 5.0 | 4.1 | 6.5 |
| Bedford | 4.2 | 5.1 | 3.4 | 1.8 | 4.6 | 4.0 | 4.5 |
| Bexley | 4.2 | 3.1 | 2.4 | 1.9 | 4.4 | 4.8 | 4.0 |
| Birmingham | 5.7 | 5.8 | 4.5 | 2.2 | 6.4 | 6.0 | 5.1 |
| Blackburn With Darwen | 5.0 | 4.6 | 3.2 | 1.0 | 5.4 | 5.4 | 5.1 |
| Blackpool | 4.9 | 3.2 | 4.1 | 2.7 | 4.8 | 5.0 | 7.5 |
| Bolton | 4.3 | 4.1 | 2.7 | 1.9 | 4.6 | 4.4 | 4.8 |
| Bournemouth, Christchurch And Poole | 4.4 | 3.2 | 2.8 | 2.5 | 4.7 | 4.4 | 3.8 |
| Bracknell Forest | 3.7 | 3.4 | 2.7 | 1.3 | 3.5 | 3.8 | 4.3 |
| Bradford | 6.4 | 6.6 | 4.2 | 1.5 | 7.2 | 6.1 | 5.6 |
| Brent | 4.4 | 3.7 | 4.9 | 2.5 | 4.7 | 4.5 | 4.8 |
| Brighton And Hove | 4.6 | 4.5 | 3.7 | 1.7 | 4.6 | 4.7 | 4.5 |
| Bristol, City Of | 5.7 | 5.9 | 5.5 | 2.2 | 6.4 | 5.6 | 5.7 |
| Bromley | 4.1 | 3.5 | 3.5 | 2.5 | 4.4 | 4.2 | 3.8 |
| Buckinghamshire | 4.4 | 5.0 | 4.0 | 2.9 | 4.8 | 4.2 | 4.9 |
| Bury | 4.6 | 5.6 | 3.3 | 2.5 | 4.9 | 4.4 | 5.0 |
| Calderdale | 4.5 | 5.5 | 3.9 | 1.8 | 5.1 | 4.3 | 4.6 |
| Cambridgeshire | 4.2 | 3.8 | 3.2 | 2.2 | 4.3 | 4.3 | 3.5 |
| Camden | 5.3 | 5.8 | 4.8 | 2.1 | 5.8 | 5.1 | 4.7 |
| Central Bedfordshire | 4.2 | 4.0 | 3.4 | 2.1 | 4.6 | 4.1 | 3.9 |
| Cheshire East | 4.3 | 4.0 | 4.2 | 1.8 | 4.4 | 4.3 | 4.6 |
| Cheshire West And Chester | 4.6 | 4.5 | 3.9 | 2.1 | 4.1 | 4.6 | 4.5 |
| City Of London | 2.7 | 3.4 | 3.2 | 3.0 | 3.3 | 1.8 | 1.8 |
| Cornwall | 4.3 | 4.2 | 4.3 | 3.0 | 4.3 | 4.3 | 5.0 |
| County Durham | 4.6 | 3.6 | 3.4 | 1.9 | 4.2 | 4.7 | 5.4 |
| Coventry | 4.9 | 4.1 | 2.9 | 1.7 | 5.5 | 5.5 | 4.6 |
| Croydon | 4.6 | 4.6 | 4.1 | 2.6 | 5.3 | 4.8 | 4.8 |
| Cumbria | 4.0 | 3.8 | 3.0 | 2.4 | 3.3 | 3.9 | 4.6 |
| Darlington | 4.4 | 3.9 | 2.1 | 2.1 | 5.1 | 4.4 | 3.9 |
| Derby | 4.8 | 4.5 | 3.1 | 2.1 | 5.6 | 4.9 | 4.6 |
| Derbyshire | 4.2 | 3.5 | 3.3 | 2.0 | 4.5 | 4.2 | 5.4 |
| Devon | 4.8 | 3.8 | 3.2 | 2.5 | 4.7 | 4.8 | 4.3 |
| Doncaster | 5.2 | 4.8 | 3.2 | 1.4 | 5.1 | 5.2 | 5.2 |
| Dorset | 4.6 | 3.5 | 3.4 | 3.5 | 4.0 | 4.6 | 4.8 |
| Dudley | 4.9 | 5.3 | 3.9 | 2.7 | 5.7 | 4.8 | 4.8 |
| Ealing | 4.5 | 4.4 | 5.1 | 1.8 | 4.8 | 4.1 | 4.7 |
| East Riding Of Yorkshire | 4.1 | 3.6 | 4.1 | 3.4 | 3.9 | 4.1 | 4.6 |
| East Sussex | 4.9 | 3.5 | 4.8 | 2.0 | 5.1 | 4.9 | 5.1 |
| Enfield | 5.1 | 4.7 | 4.5 | 2.0 | 5.2 | 5.5 | 5.0 |
| Essex | 4.4 | 3.7 | 2.8 | 2.5 | 4.3 | 4.4 | 3.3 |
| Gateshead | 5.0 | 4.7 | 2.7 | 1.9 | 4.2 | 5.0 | 4.8 |
| Gloucestershire | 4.2 | 3.4 | 3.2 | 2.8 | 4.7 | 4.2 | 4.3 |
| Greenwich | 4.1 | 3.7 | 2.9 | 1.9 | 4.7 | 4.9 | 3.5 |
| Hackney | 4.4 | 4.8 | 3.9 | 1.7 | 5.0 | 4.5 | 4.1 |
| Halton | 5.3 | 4.2 | 2.7 | 0.7 | 5.0 | 5.3 | 5.5 |
| Hammersmith And Fulham | 4.5 | 4.8 | 4.6 | 3.2 | 5.0 | 4.1 | 4.9 |
| Hampshire | 4.0 | 3.2 | 2.4 | 1.7 | 3.9 | 4.1 | 3.6 |
| Haringey | 4.9 | 5.3 | 4.5 | 2.0 | 5.2 | 4.8 | 5.2 |
| Harrow | 4.1 | 3.6 | 4.8 | 1.3 | 4.8 | 4.4 | 5.1 |
| Hartlepool | 5.4 | 4.3 | 3.4 | 0.8 | 4.2 | 5.4 | 6.2 |
| Havering | 3.8 | 3.6 | 2.8 | 1.4 | 4.1 | 3.9 | 3.1 |
| Herefordshire, County Of | 4.3 | 3.0 | 2.8 | 2.2 | 4.5 | 4.3 | 4.0 |
| Hertfordshire | 4.1 | 3.9 | 3.1 | 1.9 | 4.3 | 4.1 | 4.2 |
| Hillingdon | 4.6 | 3.9 | 4.5 | 2.1 | 4.5 | 5.2 | 4.2 |
| Hounslow | 4.2 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 1.8 | 4.6 | 4.5 | 4.2 |
| Isle Of Wight | 4.7 | 4.3 | 4.2 | 1.2 | 5.1 | 4.7 | 3.3 |
| Isles Of Scilly | 4.3 | withheld to protect confidentiality | withheld to protect confidentiality | withheld to protect confidentiality | 5.4 | 4.4 | withheld to protect confidentiality |
| Islington | 5.1 | 5.7 | 4.8 | 2.8 | 5.1 | 5.4 | 4.0 |
| Kensington And Chelsea | 4.5 | 4.3 | 4.2 | 3.1 | 5.0 | 4.2 | 4.4 |
| Kent | 4.8 | 3.5 | 2.5 | 1.9 | 4.5 | 5.0 | 4.1 |
| Kingston Upon Hull, City Of | 5.1 | 3.9 | 3.2 | 2.3 | 4.5 | 5.2 | 4.9 |
| Kingston Upon Thames | 4.0 | 4.1 | 4.2 | 2.1 | 4.1 | 3.9 | 4.3 |
| Kirklees | 4.8 | 5.7 | 3.5 | 2.8 | 5.6 | 4.3 | 5.3 |
| Knowsley | 5.8 | 2.9 | 4.0 | 2.2 | 5.1 | 5.8 | 4.3 |
| Lambeth | 4.7 | 5.1 | 4.9 | 1.9 | 5.4 | 4.0 | 4.6 |
| Lancashire | 4.4 | 5.0 | 2.9 | 2.4 | 4.9 | 4.3 | 5.0 |
| Leeds | 4.6 | 5.1 | 2.7 | 1.8 | 5.1 | 4.6 | 4.5 |
| Leicester | 4.6 | 3.6 | 3.7 | 1.9 | 5.6 | 6.0 | 4.8 |
| Leicestershire | 4.1 | 3.2 | 3.5 | 2.2 | 4.3 | 4.2 | 4.4 |
| Lewisham | 4.2 | 4.3 | 4.1 | 2.3 | 4.7 | 4.2 | 4.6 |
| Lincolnshire | 4.5 | 3.2 | 2.8 | 1.7 | 4.3 | 4.5 | 4.2 |
| Liverpool | 5.3 | 3.9 | 3.4 | 2.1 | 5.4 | 5.6 | 4.4 |
| Luton | 5.0 | 5.5 | 3.2 | 2.0 | 5.2 | 4.7 | 4.8 |
| Manchester | 5.1 | 5.3 | 3.3 | 2.3 | 5.8 | 5.8 | 4.6 |
| Medway | 4.9 | 4.2 | 2.4 | 1.8 | 5.2 | 5.1 | 4.2 |
| Merton | 4.4 | 4.2 | 4.4 | 1.8 | 5.1 | 4.3 | 3.6 |
| Middlesbrough | 5.7 | 4.3 | 2.9 | 2.3 | 5.4 | 6.0 | 4.6 |
| Milton Keynes | 4.2 | 4.0 | 2.9 | 2.4 | 4.2 | 4.4 | 4.4 |
| Newcastle Upon Tyne | 5.8 | 5.2 | 3.0 | 2.3 | 4.5 | 6.3 | 5.0 |
| Newham | 4.9 | 4.8 | 3.9 | 2.2 | 6.0 | 6.1 | 4.4 |
| Norfolk | 5.0 | 3.5 | 3.5 | 2.1 | 5.3 | 5.0 | 4.4 |
| North East Lincolnshire | 5.4 | 5.0 | 2.9 | 1.0 | 4.3 | 5.4 | 4.8 |
| North Lincolnshire | 4.8 | 4.4 | 4.0 | 1.1 | 5.3 | 4.8 | 6.8 |
| North Somerset | 4.4 | 4.3 | 3.4 | 3.7 | 4.9 | 4.4 | 4.0 |
| North Tyneside | 3.8 | 3.5 | 3.2 | 1.2 | 3.6 | 3.8 | 3.6 |
| North Yorkshire | 4.4 | 4.2 | 3.2 | 2.3 | 4.6 | 4.4 | 4.2 |
| Northamptonshire | 4.3 | 3.8 | 2.8 | 1.7 | 4.6 | 4.3 | 3.6 |
| Northumberland | 4.7 | 3.9 | 4.3 | 1.8 | 4.9 | 4.7 | 4.2 |
| Nottingham | 5.4 | 5.1 | 3.4 | 1.4 | 5.8 | 6.0 | 4.3 |
| Nottinghamshire | 4.2 | 3.7 | 3.0 | 2.1 | 4.5 | 4.2 | 4.1 |
| Oldham | 5.7 | 5.9 | 2.8 | 1.2 | 6.2 | 5.7 | 7.1 |
| Oxfordshire | 4.3 | 4.8 | 3.4 | 1.8 | 4.6 | 4.2 | 3.9 |
| Peterborough | 4.7 | 5.0 | 2.9 | 1.4 | 5.0 | 4.7 | 4.6 |
| Plymouth | 4.9 | 4.1 | 3.4 | 1.9 | 4.7 | 4.9 | 4.9 |
| Portsmouth | 5.2 | 4.0 | 2.8 | 1.7 | 5.0 | 5.4 | 4.2 |
| Reading | 4.7 | 4.6 | 4.1 | 2.3 | 5.7 | 4.6 | 4.8 |
| Redbridge | 4.4 | 4.5 | 4.1 | 1.7 | 4.4 | 4.2 | 4.5 |
| Redcar And Cleveland | 4.6 | 3.8 | 2.6 | 0.7 | 3.9 | 4.6 | 5.6 |
| Richmond Upon Thames | 3.8 | 4.1 | 4.6 | 1.7 | 4.2 | 3.6 | 4.7 |
| Rochdale | 5.3 | 5.6 | 3.0 | 1.5 | 5.6 | 5.3 | 5.0 |
| Rotherham | 4.8 | 4.9 | 2.7 | 1.9 | 5.1 | 4.8 | 3.8 |
| Rutland | 3.0 | 2.0 | 2.1 | 2.8 | 2.8 | 3.1 | 4.0 |
| Salford | 5.7 | 4.8 | 3.0 | 2.0 | 4.9 | 6.1 | 4.8 |
| Sandwell | 4.6 | 3.9 | 3.7 | 1.8 | 5.4 | 5.0 | 4.3 |
| Sefton | 5.0 | 3.6 | 2.8 | 3.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 | 6.0 |
| Sheffield | 5.6 | 5.6 | 4.2 | 2.6 | 6.8 | 5.6 | 6.0 |
| Shropshire | 4.3 | 4.3 | 4.3 | 1.7 | 4.9 | 4.3 | 4.5 |
| Slough | 5.1 | 5.0 | 4.4 | 1.4 | 5.3 | 5.6 | 4.7 |
| Solihull | 5.0 | 4.6 | 4.0 | 2.2 | 5.9 | 5.0 | 3.9 |
| Somerset | 4.6 | 3.4 | 3.5 | 3.4 | 4.6 | 4.6 | 4.6 |
| South Gloucestershire | 4.1 | 3.5 | 4.4 | 1.4 | 4.7 | 4.0 | 5.1 |
| South Tyneside | 4.6 | 5.2 | 3.3 | 1.9 | 4.0 | 4.6 | 4.8 |
| Southampton | 5.3 | 4.5 | 3.4 | 2.2 | 5.3 | 5.6 | 4.9 |
| Southend-On-Sea | 4.9 | 4.0 | 2.9 | 1.8 | 5.0 | 5.2 | 4.7 |
| Southwark | 4.5 | 5.2 | 3.9 | 2.9 | 5.2 | 4.9 | 4.4 |
| St. Helens | 5.4 | 4.3 | 6.2 | 1.9 | 5.5 | 5.4 | 5.5 |
| Staffordshire | 4.2 | 5.0 | 3.9 | 1.9 | 4.8 | 4.2 | 4.8 |
| Stockport | 4.5 | 4.9 | 3.1 | 2.0 | 4.6 | 4.4 | 4.8 |
| Stockton-On-Tees | 4.6 | 4.3 | 2.5 | 2.8 | 5.3 | 4.6 | 4.4 |
| Stoke-On-Trent | 5.4 | 5.1 | 3.1 | 2.3 | 6.6 | 5.5 | 5.4 |
| Suffolk | 4.6 | 3.9 | 3.8 | 1.7 | 4.3 | 4.6 | 4.1 |
| Sunderland | 5.1 | 4.7 | 2.2 | 3.2 | 4.9 | 5.2 | 4.8 |
| Surrey | 4.0 | 4.0 | 3.4 | 2.3 | 4.0 | 4.0 | 3.9 |
| Sutton | 4.4 | 4.0 | 3.8 | 2.2 | 4.6 | 4.7 | 4.1 |
| Swindon | 4.7 | 4.0 | 3.4 | 1.7 | 5.6 | 4.9 | 4.1 |
| Tameside | 4.2 | 4.1 | 2.7 | 1.5 | 4.3 | 4.2 | 3.8 |
| Telford And Wrekin | 4.8 | 4.5 | 2.6 | 1.5 | 5.1 | 4.9 | 4.1 |
| Thurrock | 4.2 | 4.1 | 2.6 | 2.2 | 4.0 | 4.5 | 3.3 |
| Torbay | 5.3 | 3.3 | 3.7 | 2.6 | 5.6 | 5.3 | 5.2 |
| Tower Hamlets | 4.3 | 4.1 | 3.5 | 2.2 | 5.1 | 5.4 | 3.4 |
| Trafford | 3.9 | 4.7 | 3.5 | 2.2 | 4.2 | 3.8 | 4.6 |
| Wakefield | 4.8 | 5.0 | 3.2 | 1.9 | 5.0 | 4.8 | 3.9 |
| Walsall | 5.4 | 4.8 | 3.6 | 2.6 | 5.7 | 5.7 | 5.8 |
| Waltham Forest | 5.3 | 5.7 | 6.0 | 2.3 | 5.6 | 4.7 | 4.6 |
| Wandsworth | 4.5 | 4.8 | 5.0 | 1.9 | 5.1 | 3.9 | 4.5 |
| Warrington | 4.1 | 4.1 | 3.2 | 3.0 | 4.3 | 4.0 | 4.4 |
| Warwickshire | 4.7 | 3.4 | 3.4 | 2.1 | 4.9 | 4.8 | 4.0 |
| West Berkshire | 4.2 | 4.7 | 3.7 | 3.2 | 4.4 | 4.2 | 4.1 |
| West Sussex | 4.2 | 3.9 | 3.3 | 2.1 | 4.4 | 4.2 | 4.5 |
| Westminster | 5.4 | 5.7 | 4.9 | 3.0 | 5.6 | 4.9 | 6.0 |
| Wigan | 4.8 | 4.3 | 3.4 | 1.6 | 4.8 | 4.8 | 5.0 |
| Wiltshire | 4.1 | 3.2 | 3.0 | 2.0 | 4.5 | 4.2 | 3.7 |
| Windsor And Maidenhead | 4.2 | 4.6 | 3.3 | 1.7 | 3.8 | 4.1 | 3.8 |
| Wirral | 4.9 | 4.0 | 3.8 | 2.4 | 4.5 | 4.9 | 5.4 |
| Wokingham | 3.9 | 4.4 | 3.3 | 2.3 | 4.1 | 3.7 | 4.9 |
| Wolverhampton | 4.5 | 3.4 | 3.4 | 1.9 | 5.4 | 5.1 | 4.8 |
| Worcestershire | 4.6 | 4.7 | 3.6 | 1.8 | 5.0 | 4.5 | 4.6 |
| York | 4.1 | 3.1 | 3.5 | 2.4 | 3.9 | 4.1 | 3.7 |
Download table data for ‘Overall absence by ethnicity and area’ (CSV) Source data for ‘Overall absence by ethnicity and area’ (CSV)
Summary of Absence from school Overall absence by ethnicity and area Summary
The data shows that, out of all local authorities where data was available:
- Bradford had the highest overall absence rate for pupils of mixed ethnicity (7.2%) and Asian pupils (6.6%)
- the overall absence rate for black pupils was highest in St Helens (6.2%)
- the overall absence rate for pupils from the Chinese ethnic group was highest in North Somerset (3.7%)
- the overall absence rate for white pupils was highest in Newcastle upon Tyne (6.3%)
5. Overall absence by ethnicity and type of school
| State-Funded Primary | State-Funded Secondary | Special | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ethnicity | State-Funded Primary Value | State-Funded Primary Sessions | State-Funded Secondary Value | State-Funded Secondary Sessions | Special Value | Special Sessions | Total Value | Total Sessions |
| All | 3.6 | 51,400,577 | 5.5 | 59,525,923 | 15.2 | 6,257,025 | 4.6 | 117,183,525 |
| Asian | 4.3 | 6,709,391 | 4.8 | 5,780,532 | 16.0 | 649,956 | 4.7 | 13,139,879 |
| Bangladeshi | 4.7 | 1,084,403 | 5.0 | 943,357 | 15.7 | 110,919 | 5.0 | 2,138,679 |
| Indian | 3.1 | 1,420,577 | 3.2 | 1,091,613 | 12.8 | 99,063 | 3.2 | 2,611,253 |
| Pakistani | 5.5 | 3,302,425 | 6.1 | 2,978,915 | 18.0 | 325,128 | 6.0 | 6,606,468 |
| Asian Other | 3.5 | 901,986 | 3.9 | 766,647 | 14.7 | 114,846 | 3.8 | 1,783,479 |
| Black | 3.3 | 2,447,665 | 4.0 | 2,510,517 | 12.9 | 364,991 | 3.8 | 5,323,173 |
| Black African | 2.8 | 1,469,142 | 3.4 | 1,439,814 | 12.5 | 233,738 | 3.3 | 3,142,694 |
| Black Caribbean | 4.7 | 593,489 | 5.8 | 715,125 | 14.0 | 70,322 | 5.4 | 1,378,936 |
| Black Other | 3.6 | 385,034 | 4.4 | 355,578 | 13.8 | 60,931 | 4.2 | 801,543 |
| Chinese | 2.0 | 134,777 | 2.0 | 85,580 | 13.4 | 18,081 | 2.1 | 238,438 |
| Mixed | 4.0 | 3,734,923 | 5.9 | 3,809,390 | 15.0 | 405,362 | 5.0 | 7,949,675 |
| Mixed White And Asian | 3.4 | 775,661 | 5.1 | 795,074 | 14.7 | 70,956 | 4.3 | 1,641,691 |
| Mixed White And Black African | 3.7 | 479,203 | 5.5 | 499,400 | 14.6 | 58,161 | 4.7 | 1,036,764 |
| Mixed White And Black Caribbean | 5.0 | 1,124,996 | 7.5 | 1,253,789 | 16.1 | 127,431 | 6.3 | 2,506,216 |
| Mixed Other | 3.9 | 1,355,063 | 5.4 | 1,261,127 | 14.5 | 148,814 | 4.6 | 2,765,004 |
| White | 3.5 | 36,364,989 | 5.7 | 44,781,036 | 15.3 | 4,582,766 | 4.6 | 85,728,791 |
| White British | 3.4 | 31,620,473 | 5.7 | 40,801,981 | 15.3 | 4,273,159 | 4.6 | 76,695,613 |
| White Irish | 4.6 | 155,524 | 6.0 | 176,855 | 20.0 | 20,222 | 5.5 | 352,601 |
| Gypsy, Roma | 13.9 | 723,474 | 16.4 | 462,055 | 26.8 | 39,781 | 15.0 | 1,225,310 |
| Irish Traveller | 19.5 | 271,612 | 16.9 | 77,099 | 29.4 | 13,209 | 19.1 | 361,920 |
| White Other | 3.5 | 3,593,906 | 4.9 | 3,263,046 | 13.6 | 236,395 | 4.2 | 7,093,347 |
| Other | 4.1 | 1,194,640 | 5.0 | 1,056,819 | 14.1 | 101,517 | 4.6 | 2,352,976 |
Download table data for ‘Overall absence by ethnicity and type of school’ (CSV) Source data for ‘Overall absence by ethnicity and type of school’ (CSV)
Summary of Absence from school Overall absence by ethnicity and type of school Summary
The data shows that:
- in every ethnic group except traveller of Irish heritage, the overall absence rate was highest in special schools and lowest in primary schools
6. Persistent absence by ethnicity
| Ethnicity | % | Pupil enrolments |
|---|---|---|
| All | 12.1 | 872,438 |
| Asian | 11.5 | 92,269 |
| Bangladeshi | 11.4 | 13,925 |
| Indian | 6.8 | 15,685 |
| Pakistani | 16.1 | 50,899 |
| Asian Other | 8.7 | 11,760 |
| Black | 9.4 | 38,554 |
| Black African | 7.3 | 20,504 |
| Black Caribbean | 16.0 | 11,791 |
| Black Other | 11.2 | 6,259 |
| Chinese | 4.5 | 1,460 |
| Mixed | 13.7 | 62,920 |
| Mixed White And Asian | 10.9 | 11,963 |
| Mixed White And Black African | 12.5 | 7,967 |
| Mixed White And Black Caribbean | 18.9 | 21,645 |
| Mixed Other | 12.5 | 21,345 |
| White | 12.1 | 634,139 |
| White British | 12.0 | 561,101 |
| White Irish | 15.6 | 2,882 |
| Gypsy, Roma | 52.1 | 13,575 |
| Irish Traveller | 58.8 | 3,626 |
| White Other | 10.8 | 52,955 |
| Other | 11.6 | 17,329 |
Download table data for ‘Persistent absence by ethnicity’ (CSV) Source data for ‘Persistent absence by ethnicity’ (CSV)
Summary of Absence from school Persistent absence by ethnicity Summary
The data shows that:
- in the 2020 to 2021 school year, 12.1% of pupils missed 10% or more of their school sessions
- 4.5% of pupils from the Chinese ethnic group were persistently absent – the lowest percentage out of all ethnic groups
- 58.8% of pupils from the traveller of Irish heritage ethnic group were persistently absent – the highest percentage out of all ethnic groups
- 12.0% of white British pupils were persistently absent
7. Persistent absence by ethnicity and area
| Local Authority | All | Asian | Black | Chinese | Mixed | White | Other |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| % | % | % | % | % | % | % | |
| All - England | 12.1 | 11.5 | 9.4 | 4.5 | 13.7 | 12.1 | 11.6 |
| Barking And Dagenham | 13.1 | 11.5 | 7.2 | 5.5 | 15.7 | 17.8 | 11.6 |
| Barnet | 9.0 | 6.9 | 11.1 | 3.2 | 10.7 | 8.2 | 10.4 |
| Barnsley | 12.5 | 9.9 | 10.6 | 11.5 | 13.3 | 12.4 | 14.1 |
| Bath And North East Somerset | 10.3 | 10.4 | 14.6 | 4.5 | 14.6 | 9.7 | 16.2 |
| Bedford | 10.8 | 12.5 | 8.8 | 3.1 | 13.0 | 10.0 | 12.4 |
| Bexley | 10.5 | 5.5 | 4.1 | 2.7 | 11.2 | 13.2 | 8.3 |
| Birmingham | 16.1 | 15.5 | 11.8 | 6.0 | 19.3 | 17.8 | 13.1 |
| Blackburn With Darwen | 13.7 | 11.1 | 7.2 | 0.0 | 17.1 | 15.7 | 13.6 |
| Blackpool | 14.0 | 5.8 | 9.1 | 8.5 | 15.5 | 14.1 | 25.7 |
| Bolton | 10.5 | 8.6 | 5.3 | 3.0 | 12.9 | 11.3 | 13.6 |
| Bournemouth, Christchurch And Poole | 10.9 | 5.7 | 5.2 | 3.6 | 11.9 | 11.0 | 8.0 |
| Bracknell Forest | 8.5 | 7.1 | 6.3 | 1.4 | 8.4 | 8.7 | 9.3 |
| Bradford | 18.5 | 18.8 | 12.2 | 1.2 | 21.8 | 17.6 | 15.3 |
| Brent | 11.3 | 8.8 | 12.8 | 3.8 | 12.2 | 12.2 | 10.8 |
| Brighton And Hove | 11.7 | 9.6 | 10.6 | 3.4 | 12.2 | 11.8 | 10.8 |
| Bristol, City Of | 16.4 | 18.0 | 15.7 | 4.8 | 19.3 | 15.7 | 18.2 |
| Bromley | 9.7 | 6.7 | 7.8 | 5.5 | 11.8 | 10.0 | 7.7 |
| Buckinghamshire | 10.9 | 12.5 | 9.9 | 6.6 | 13.2 | 10.1 | 12.4 |
| Bury | 11.8 | 14.3 | 7.4 | 6.2 | 13.8 | 11.2 | 13.6 |
| Calderdale | 12.2 | 15.3 | 10.5 | 3.6 | 15.1 | 11.1 | 14.4 |
| Cambridgeshire | 10.6 | 8.6 | 7.5 | 5.2 | 11.3 | 10.6 | 7.5 |
| Camden | 14.1 | 15.7 | 12.3 | 7.5 | 17.3 | 13.2 | 11.3 |
| Central Bedfordshire | 10.0 | 9.5 | 7.9 | 9.2 | 12.6 | 9.7 | 9.9 |
| Cheshire East | 11.2 | 9.9 | 12.5 | 1.7 | 12.0 | 11.0 | 11.2 |
| Cheshire West And Chester | 11.5 | 11.4 | 9.5 | 4.3 | 9.4 | 11.5 | 9.7 |
| City Of London | 3.4 | 4.7 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 8.7 | 1.4 | 0.0 |
| Cornwall | 11.2 | 10.7 | 11.9 | 6.4 | 10.6 | 11.1 | 16.1 |
| County Durham | 12.3 | 8.8 | 9.4 | 2.5 | 10.5 | 12.4 | 13.4 |
| Coventry | 13.6 | 10.3 | 6.3 | 1.4 | 15.7 | 16.1 | 10.1 |
| Croydon | 12.2 | 10.4 | 10.7 | 5.5 | 14.7 | 12.8 | 10.8 |
| Cumbria | 9.7 | 10.3 | 7.2 | 5.0 | 7.4 | 9.5 | 13.2 |
| Darlington | 11.9 | 11.2 | 5.3 | 3.4 | 16.6 | 11.7 | 9.6 |
| Derby | 13.2 | 10.1 | 7.7 | 5.2 | 16.5 | 14.0 | 11.0 |
| Derbyshire | 10.5 | 8.2 | 10.1 | 2.7 | 11.1 | 10.4 | 13.1 |
| Devon | 12.7 | 8.9 | 8.3 | 5.5 | 12.6 | 12.6 | 11.2 |
| Doncaster | 14.2 | 11.0 | 10.7 | 3.8 | 13.5 | 14.3 | 15.2 |
| Dorset | 11.5 | 7.4 | 9.2 | 6.5 | 10.0 | 11.5 | 10.5 |
| Dudley | 13.8 | 14.1 | 10.2 | 6.7 | 17.5 | 13.4 | 8.9 |
| Ealing | 11.6 | 11.2 | 13.1 | 3.4 | 13.6 | 10.5 | 11.3 |
| East Riding Of Yorkshire | 10.0 | 8.6 | 13.0 | 3.6 | 10.0 | 9.9 | 11.2 |
| East Sussex | 12.8 | 7.4 | 13.7 | 4.7 | 13.8 | 12.8 | 11.9 |
| Enfield | 14.6 | 11.1 | 11.5 | 5.1 | 15.2 | 16.2 | 13.9 |
| Essex | 11.0 | 7.9 | 6.2 | 4.8 | 11.7 | 11.2 | 6.4 |
| Gateshead | 13.4 | 12.4 | 5.9 | 3.1 | 10.6 | 13.6 | 13.7 |
| Gloucestershire | 10.7 | 6.5 | 8.3 | 5.0 | 12.8 | 10.8 | 9.8 |
| Greenwich | 10.0 | 6.4 | 5.4 | 2.2 | 11.5 | 13.6 | 7.6 |
| Hackney | 11.1 | 11.5 | 10.1 | 3.5 | 14.0 | 11.4 | 8.5 |
| Halton | 14.9 | 11.1 | 2.8 | 0.0 | 15.4 | 14.9 | 13.5 |
| Hammersmith And Fulham | 11.3 | 11.3 | 11.5 | 8.9 | 14.2 | 9.9 | 11.7 |
| Hampshire | 9.9 | 6.9 | 5.2 | 3.3 | 9.8 | 10.0 | 8.1 |
| Haringey | 13.4 | 13.6 | 11.9 | 3.6 | 14.6 | 13.0 | 14.3 |
| Harrow | 10.8 | 8.4 | 13.6 | 1.8 | 13.6 | 11.9 | 13.6 |
| Hartlepool | 16.3 | 11.3 | 10.3 | 1.6 | 10.6 | 16.5 | 23.4 |
| Havering | 8.9 | 7.5 | 6.4 | 1.5 | 10.6 | 9.2 | 6.7 |
| Herefordshire, County Of | 10.9 | 7.2 | 7.9 | 0.0 | 10.8 | 11.0 | 7.6 |
| Hertfordshire | 9.7 | 8.3 | 7.1 | 2.3 | 10.8 | 9.8 | 10.2 |
| Hillingdon | 11.6 | 9.3 | 10.4 | 6.7 | 11.4 | 14.2 | 9.2 |
| Hounslow | 10.1 | 8.7 | 8.8 | 2.4 | 12.3 | 11.5 | 8.9 |
| Isle Of Wight | 13.2 | 13.5 | 10.0 | 0.0 | 13.4 | 13.1 | 10.4 |
| Isles Of Scilly | 8.8 | withheld to protect confidentiality | withheld to protect confidentiality | withheld to protect confidentiality | 25.0 | 8.7 | withheld to protect confidentiality |
| Islington | 14.1 | 15.0 | 12.4 | 6.9 | 14.8 | 15.2 | 9.1 |
| Kensington And Chelsea | 11.1 | 10.1 | 10.6 | 8.2 | 13.9 | 9.8 | 10.7 |
| Kent | 13.2 | 7.5 | 5.8 | 3.3 | 11.7 | 13.9 | 9.6 |
| Kingston Upon Hull, City Of | 14.8 | 8.4 | 7.0 | 11.1 | 13.1 | 15.0 | 12.8 |
| Kingston Upon Thames | 9.6 | 9.1 | 12.1 | 4.7 | 10.0 | 9.4 | 9.8 |
| Kirklees | 12.8 | 14.7 | 9.3 | 8.2 | 17.3 | 11.2 | 15.3 |
| Knowsley | 17.5 | 6.5 | 10.3 | 6.7 | 14.6 | 17.8 | 7.6 |
| Lambeth | 12.7 | 13.2 | 13.3 | 1.9 | 16.4 | 9.9 | 11.0 |
| Lancashire | 11.5 | 12.3 | 7.6 | 7.0 | 13.9 | 11.1 | 14.4 |
| Leeds | 12.5 | 13.0 | 6.2 | 4.2 | 14.4 | 12.8 | 12.0 |
| Leicester | 11.9 | 7.3 | 8.0 | 2.6 | 16.6 | 17.9 | 11.2 |
| Leicestershire | 10.0 | 6.3 | 8.1 | 3.6 | 11.6 | 10.2 | 11.2 |
| Lewisham | 10.9 | 10.5 | 10.1 | 4.3 | 12.9 | 10.9 | 11.2 |
| Lincolnshire | 12.3 | 7.4 | 6.8 | 2.6 | 12.6 | 12.3 | 12.6 |
| Liverpool | 14.8 | 8.5 | 8.2 | 4.2 | 15.0 | 15.9 | 10.2 |
| Luton | 12.9 | 13.6 | 7.7 | 7.8 | 14.1 | 12.9 | 12.6 |
| Manchester | 14.1 | 13.9 | 8.1 | 7.0 | 16.7 | 16.9 | 11.7 |
| Medway | 13.4 | 8.3 | 5.0 | 2.5 | 15.3 | 14.6 | 10.1 |
| Merton | 11.0 | 9.3 | 12.0 | 2.8 | 14.1 | 11.0 | 7.0 |
| Middlesbrough | 16.7 | 10.4 | 10.1 | 8.9 | 17.6 | 17.7 | 11.3 |
| Milton Keynes | 10.8 | 9.8 | 6.4 | 6.1 | 11.6 | 11.2 | 13.3 |
| Newcastle Upon Tyne | 16.1 | 12.4 | 7.3 | 5.4 | 11.9 | 18.0 | 13.2 |
| Newham | 13.5 | 12.1 | 9.9 | 6.9 | 17.0 | 19.0 | 11.2 |
| Norfolk | 13.3 | 7.4 | 8.8 | 3.6 | 15.0 | 13.3 | 11.6 |
| North East Lincolnshire | 15.4 | 15.3 | 10.0 | 3.3 | 10.8 | 15.5 | 14.5 |
| North Lincolnshire | 13.7 | 9.0 | 15.7 | 0.0 | 15.5 | 13.6 | 24.2 |
| North Somerset | 11.1 | 10.8 | 7.8 | 10.6 | 13.5 | 10.9 | 14.1 |
| North Tyneside | 9.3 | 7.9 | 8.9 | 2.0 | 8.6 | 9.3 | 10.1 |
| North Yorkshire | 11.1 | 10.0 | 8.7 | 6.0 | 12.1 | 11.0 | 10.1 |
| Northamptonshire | 10.7 | 8.0 | 6.0 | 3.6 | 12.2 | 11.0 | 8.2 |
| Northumberland | 12.1 | 8.9 | 12.0 | 0.0 | 13.1 | 12.1 | 6.7 |
| Nottingham | 15.0 | 12.7 | 8.4 | 3.5 | 16.7 | 17.0 | 11.1 |
| Nottinghamshire | 10.3 | 6.8 | 6.8 | 4.4 | 11.5 | 10.3 | 8.6 |
| Oldham | 16.0 | 16.0 | 6.8 | 2.0 | 17.9 | 16.2 | 20.3 |
| Oxfordshire | 10.3 | 12.6 | 7.9 | 4.4 | 11.8 | 10.1 | 9.0 |
| Peterborough | 12.5 | 12.9 | 6.7 | 1.0 | 12.3 | 12.5 | 10.7 |
| Plymouth | 12.9 | 7.8 | 5.3 | 4.7 | 12.1 | 13.0 | 12.7 |
| Portsmouth | 13.4 | 8.4 | 7.0 | 4.9 | 12.3 | 14.2 | 9.1 |
| Reading | 12.3 | 11.5 | 10.5 | 5.6 | 16.3 | 12.0 | 11.3 |
| Redbridge | 10.6 | 10.3 | 10.5 | 2.5 | 11.3 | 10.8 | 10.0 |
| Redcar And Cleveland | 12.0 | 5.9 | 3.4 | 0.0 | 9.2 | 11.9 | 19.5 |
| Richmond Upon Thames | 8.9 | 10.3 | 10.7 | 3.7 | 11.0 | 8.1 | 11.0 |
| Rochdale | 14.7 | 15.2 | 7.3 | 1.8 | 16.7 | 14.8 | 11.7 |
| Rotherham | 12.9 | 12.2 | 8.5 | 4.0 | 14.6 | 13.0 | 10.7 |
| Rutland | 6.5 | 1.9 | 2.4 | 0.0 | 8.4 | 6.5 | 14.3 |
| Salford | 16.7 | 13.7 | 7.3 | 2.3 | 14.3 | 18.0 | 13.4 |
| Sandwell | 12.0 | 8.2 | 9.8 | 2.2 | 15.8 | 13.9 | 11.1 |
| Sefton | 13.4 | 10.6 | 8.3 | 9.1 | 13.3 | 13.3 | 19.3 |
| Sheffield | 16.0 | 15.1 | 10.7 | 8.4 | 20.1 | 15.9 | 17.2 |
| Shropshire | 10.9 | 11.6 | 9.7 | 1.4 | 14.2 | 10.7 | 11.0 |
| Slough | 13.6 | 12.4 | 11.2 | 2.6 | 14.9 | 15.9 | 12.2 |
| Solihull | 13.1 | 11.0 | 10.7 | 4.7 | 17.1 | 13.1 | 8.6 |
| Somerset | 11.5 | 8.1 | 11.0 | 8.9 | 11.0 | 11.4 | 12.7 |
| South Gloucestershire | 10.4 | 7.9 | 11.5 | 2.4 | 12.9 | 10.0 | 15.5 |
| South Tyneside | 11.6 | 14.0 | 9.2 | 0.0 | 10.3 | 11.5 | 14.0 |
| Southampton | 14.7 | 11.5 | 8.2 | 9.3 | 14.1 | 15.6 | 13.6 |
| Southend-On-Sea | 13.6 | 9.2 | 6.6 | 3.1 | 14.5 | 14.6 | 14.1 |
| Southwark | 11.6 | 12.4 | 9.6 | 6.9 | 14.9 | 12.8 | 11.1 |
| St. Helens | 14.7 | 9.8 | 13.6 | 1.3 | 15.5 | 14.7 | 16.4 |
| Staffordshire | 10.8 | 13.4 | 10.3 | 3.6 | 13.5 | 10.5 | 13.6 |
| Stockport | 11.9 | 11.9 | 7.0 | 5.1 | 11.8 | 12.0 | 12.2 |
| Stockton-On-Tees | 11.8 | 10.9 | 6.3 | 5.6 | 15.4 | 11.7 | 15.0 |
| Stoke-On-Trent | 15.6 | 14.1 | 7.0 | 6.4 | 20.4 | 16.1 | 16.0 |
| Suffolk | 11.8 | 8.6 | 11.6 | 3.4 | 11.4 | 11.7 | 9.9 |
| Sunderland | 13.5 | 11.6 | 4.8 | 6.8 | 13.3 | 13.6 | 16.1 |
| Surrey | 9.7 | 9.5 | 8.4 | 6.0 | 9.6 | 9.7 | 9.2 |
| Sutton | 11.7 | 10.6 | 10.3 | 4.5 | 12.9 | 12.4 | 10.0 |
| Swindon | 12.4 | 9.4 | 8.1 | 2.0 | 14.9 | 12.8 | 9.9 |
| Tameside | 10.2 | 8.6 | 5.3 | 1.3 | 11.7 | 10.5 | 9.6 |
| Telford And Wrekin | 13.1 | 11.0 | 6.8 | 3.7 | 14.5 | 13.5 | 9.8 |
| Thurrock | 10.5 | 8.9 | 6.0 | 3.6 | 10.8 | 11.5 | 6.9 |
| Torbay | 15.2 | 6.8 | 6.3 | 9.4 | 17.4 | 15.1 | 17.7 |
| Tower Hamlets | 10.3 | 9.1 | 8.0 | 6.0 | 15.3 | 16.1 | 6.9 |
| Trafford | 9.8 | 12.4 | 8.7 | 5.2 | 11.0 | 9.2 | 11.1 |
| Wakefield | 12.9 | 12.3 | 6.9 | 4.7 | 12.9 | 12.9 | 7.5 |
| Walsall | 14.9 | 11.4 | 9.5 | 4.0 | 17.1 | 16.3 | 17.7 |
| Waltham Forest | 14.8 | 14.7 | 17.8 | 6.4 | 16.0 | 13.2 | 12.2 |
| Wandsworth | 11.8 | 12.2 | 13.7 | 4.2 | 14.8 | 9.4 | 11.5 |
| Warrington | 9.9 | 9.6 | 6.4 | 7.3 | 11.9 | 9.7 | 9.8 |
| Warwickshire | 11.9 | 6.5 | 7.9 | 3.7 | 12.7 | 12.2 | 9.6 |
| West Berkshire | 10.3 | 12.1 | 10.3 | 8.6 | 11.6 | 10.1 | 9.9 |
| West Sussex | 10.7 | 8.5 | 8.6 | 3.3 | 11.9 | 10.7 | 11.6 |
| Westminster | 14.2 | 13.8 | 13.2 | 6.9 | 15.8 | 12.4 | 15.8 |
| Wigan | 12.2 | 10.4 | 7.9 | 3.7 | 12.7 | 12.2 | 15.6 |
| Wiltshire | 10.1 | 6.3 | 7.3 | 2.6 | 11.8 | 10.1 | 9.1 |
| Windsor And Maidenhead | 10.3 | 11.5 | 7.0 | 2.2 | 8.9 | 10.2 | 8.1 |
| Wirral | 12.5 | 8.8 | 12.3 | 4.8 | 11.1 | 12.6 | 15.3 |
| Wokingham | 9.2 | 10.5 | 8.0 | 5.1 | 9.6 | 8.8 | 11.4 |
| Wolverhampton | 12.3 | 7.1 | 9.4 | 3.9 | 16.5 | 14.5 | 12.7 |
| Worcestershire | 11.8 | 11.9 | 9.1 | 4.2 | 14.1 | 11.7 | 13.0 |
| York | 10.1 | 6.7 | 9.8 | 5.9 | 10.5 | 10.2 | 7.9 |
Download table data for ‘Persistent absence by ethnicity and area’ (CSV) Source data for ‘Persistent absence by ethnicity and area’ (CSV)
Summary of Absence from school Persistent absence by ethnicity and area Summary
The data shows that, out of all local authorities where data was available:
- Bradford had the highest persistent absence rates for pupils of mixed ethnicity (21.8%) and Asian pupils (18.8%)
- the persistent absence rate for black pupils was highest in Waltham Forest (17.8%)
- the persistent absence rate for pupils from the Chinese ethnic group was highest in Barnsley (at 11.5%) – in some local authorities, the number of pupils from this group is too small to make any reliable conclusions
- for white pupils, the persistent absence rate was highest in Newham (19.0%)
8. Persistent absence by ethnicity and type of school
| State-Funded Primary | State-Funded Secondary | Special | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ethnicity | State-Funded Primary % | State-Funded Primary Pupil enrolments | State-Funded Secondary % | State-Funded Secondary Pupil enrolments | Special % | Special Pupil enrolments | Total % | Total Pupil enrolments |
| All | 8.8 | 347,489 | 14.8 | 466,903 | 48.9 | 58,046 | 12.1 | 872,438 |
| Asian | 10.1 | 44,707 | 11.8 | 41,484 | 52.6 | 6,078 | 11.5 | 92,269 |
| Bangladeshi | 10.1 | 6,597 | 11.5 | 6,308 | 51.4 | 1,020 | 11.4 | 13,925 |
| Indian | 6.4 | 8,361 | 6.6 | 6,365 | 43.8 | 959 | 6.8 | 15,685 |
| Pakistani | 14.2 | 24,218 | 16.7 | 23,668 | 58.2 | 3,013 | 16.1 | 50,899 |
| Asian Other | 7.4 | 5,531 | 8.9 | 5,143 | 49.2 | 1,086 | 8.7 | 11,760 |
| Black | 7.8 | 16,771 | 9.9 | 18,302 | 43.0 | 3,481 | 9.4 | 38,554 |
| Black African | 6.0 | 8,988 | 7.4 | 9,281 | 41.8 | 2,235 | 7.3 | 20,504 |
| Black Caribbean | 13.8 | 4,927 | 17.1 | 6,219 | 43.7 | 645 | 16.0 | 11,791 |
| Black Other | 9.2 | 2,856 | 11.8 | 2,802 | 47.4 | 601 | 11.2 | 6,259 |
| Chinese | 4.0 | 786 | 4.0 | 493 | 47.9 | 181 | 4.5 | 1,460 |
| Mixed | 10.5 | 27,493 | 16.7 | 31,664 | 48.4 | 3,763 | 13.7 | 62,920 |
| Mixed White And Asian | 8.2 | 5,167 | 13.6 | 6,125 | 48.6 | 671 | 10.9 | 11,963 |
| Mixed White And Black African | 9.4 | 3,406 | 15.2 | 4,028 | 46.7 | 533 | 12.5 | 7,967 |
| Mixed White And Black Caribbean | 14.4 | 9,126 | 23.1 | 11,336 | 50.9 | 1,183 | 18.9 | 21,645 |
| Mixed Other | 9.9 | 9,794 | 14.8 | 10,175 | 46.9 | 1,376 | 12.5 | 21,345 |
| White | 8.4 | 240,290 | 15.5 | 351,568 | 49.0 | 42,281 | 12.1 | 634,139 |
| White British | 8.0 | 203,001 | 15.5 | 318,633 | 49.1 | 39,467 | 12.0 | 561,101 |
| White Irish | 13.5 | 1,287 | 16.5 | 1,429 | 57.2 | 166 | 15.6 | 2,882 |
| Gypsy, Roma | 49.1 | 8,088 | 56.4 | 5,175 | 70.1 | 312 | 52.1 | 13,575 |
| Irish Traveller | 60.8 | 2,791 | 51.1 | 739 | 72.7 | 96 | 58.8 | 3,626 |
| White Other | 8.6 | 25,123 | 13.0 | 25,592 | 45.4 | 2,240 | 10.8 | 52,955 |
| Other | 10.0 | 8,425 | 12.6 | 7,959 | 45.6 | 945 | 11.6 | 17,329 |
Download table data for ‘Persistent absence by ethnicity and type of school’ (CSV) Source data for ‘Persistent absence by ethnicity and type of school’ (CSV)
Summary of Absence from school Persistent absence by ethnicity and type of school Summary
The data shows that:
- in every ethnic group except traveller of Irish heritage, the persistent absence rate was highest in special schools and lowest in primary schools
9. Data sources
Source
Pupil absence in schools in England, Academic Year 2020/21
Type of data
Administrative data
Type of statistic
National Statistics
Publisher
Department for Education
Publication frequency
Yearly
Purpose of data source
The data helps schools, local authorities and the government have a greater understanding of the level of absence and the reasons for it.
10. Download the data
Overall and Persistent Absence - Local Authority
- Spreadsheet
(csv)
479 KB
This file contains the following: measure, time, ethnicity, ethnicity_type, Local Authority, Value, Numerator, Denominator
Overall and Persistent Absence - National
- Spreadsheet
(csv)
44 KB
This file contains the following: Measure, Time, Time_type, Ethnicity, Ethnicity_type, Geography, Type Of School, Value, Numerator, Denominator