If your child is unwell and regular attendance at school is going to be difficult, contact school as soon as possible and share any relevant information from health professionals.
The Department for Education statutory guidance ‘Working together to improve school attendance‘ says:
Supportive approaches are most effective when they are put in place as early as possible and therefore it is essential all partners work together in a timely manner. If a pupil’s absence requires support from an outside agency which is not provided quickly (e.g. subject to a waiting list), schools and/or local authorities should consider other avenues of support or other temporary solutions whilst waiting. (22).
School staff should arrange pastoral support which aims to improve attendance as well as supporting the underlying health issue. This includes thinking about any adjustments to policy or practice to help meet the needs of children who are struggling to attend school, as well as their legal duty under the Equality Act 2010 to make reasonable adjustments for disabled pupils.
They should consider whether a phased return to school would be appropriate, for example a child feeling anxious about going to school.
The Department for Education guidance ‘Supporting pupils at school with medical conditions‘ includes information about ‘individual healthcare plans’. These are used for some children to make sure staff know how to support their medical conditions. Though school will be responsible for maintaining and implementing the plan, this would be drawn up in partnership with you, your child and health/social care professionals.
School must make a sickness return to the local authority if a pupil will miss 15 days, or if the total number of school days missed in the current school year reaches or exceeds 15 ( as per School Attendance Regulations – Regulation 13 (9) and paragraph 58 of the Working together to improve school attendance guidance).
The Department for Education has further guidance for schools and local authorities ‘Summary of responsibilities where a mental health issue is affecting attendance’. The guidance applies to any child or young person showing any social, emotional or mental health issue that is affecting their attendance. It’s not just about children who have a diagnosed mental health condition, disability or special educational need. The guidance sets out the school’s responsibilities to
- support positive mental health across the school
- to identify possible difficulties with going to school and act early
- to put support in place if a child is not attending school
- work with parent carers
- to make reasonable adjustments to support a child in school
The guidance also gives some good practice examples, showing how schools have supported children to build up their confidence and feel more able to be in school regularly.
The Department for Education statutory guidance ‘Working together to improve school attendance‘ says:
In cases of both long term physical or mental ill health, school staff are not expected to diagnose or treat physical or mental health conditions, but they are expected to work together with families and other agencies with the aim of ensuring regular attendance for every pupil. (58)
Do I need to provide medical evidence?
The Department for Education guidance ‘Working together to improve school attendance‘ says:
Schools are not expected to routinely request that parents provide medical evidence to support illness absences.
Only where the school has genuine and reasonable doubt about the authenticity of the illness should medical evidence be requested to support the absence.
Where medical evidence is deemed necessary, schools should not be rigid about the form of evidence requested.
Where a parent cannot provide evidence in the form requested but can provide other evidence, schools should take this into account. Where a parent cannot provide any written evidence the school should have a conversation with the parent and pupil, if appropriate, which may in itself serve as the necessary evidence to record the absence. (365 and 366).
What is a reduced or part-time timetable?
Children of compulsory school age have the right to a full-time education unless, due to health needs, it would not be in their best interests.
Sometimes, a child may need a part-time timetable – for example, where a medical condition prevents them from attending school full-time. A part-time timetable can be used to help a child access as much education as possible.
This must not be treated as a long-term solution and should only be in place in exceptional circumstances, for a temporary period (with an agreed date for when the reduced timetable will end).
The Government guidance ‘Supporting pupils at school with medical conditions‘ says:
Part-time timetables
- All pupils of compulsory school age are entitled to a full-time education suitable to their age, aptitude and any special educational needs they may have. In some circumstances their education may be provided partially at school and partially at another educational setting or through education otherwise than at a school in line with section 19 of the Education Act 1996 or section 42 or 61 of the Children and Families Act 2014. Time away from school to receive education in other ways must be recorded in the attendance register using the appropriate codes (see chapter 8).
- In very exceptional circumstances, where it is in a pupil’s best interests, there may be a need for a school to provide a pupil of compulsory school age with less than full-time education through a temporary part-time timetable to meet their individual needs. For example, where a medical condition prevents a pupil from attending school or another setting full-time and a part-time timetable is used to help the pupil access as much education as possible. A part-time timetable should not be used to manage a pupil’s behaviour.
If you are feeling under pressure to agree to a reduced timetable, talk to school about whether there are other appropriate support options, for example…
- an Early Help Assessment – a way of working with families and assessing needs
- referral to the Specialist Education Services or to the Psychology and Therapeutic Service (for an Educational Psychologist or Inclusion Facilitator)
- Referral to a health service.
- a request to the local authority to carry out an EHC needs assessment or, where an EHC plan is already in place, requesting an early review
See also ‘Alternative provision‘
Children with an EHC plan
The local authority has a duty to secure the special educational provision in section F of an EHC plan. Section 42 of the Children & Families Act 2014 contains the legal duty.
If your child or young person is too unwell, or refusing, to attend a school named in an Education, Health and Care plan you could contact the local authority to request an early annual review.
Annual reviews provide the opportunity to update circumstances, discuss progress being made towards outcomes, and ask for any amendments you would like to make to the plan.
You could consider requesting a re-assessment. This is helpful if the needs have changed significantly since the EHC plan was first issued, the professional advice used to write the plan needs to be updated, or the provision (or placement) is no longer meeting the needs of your child/young person.
IPSEA have a model letter: IPSEA model letter to request re-assessment.
You will also have an opportunity to request a particular school to be named, if the local authority decides to amend the plan.
Further information
Useful links
Department for Education guidance:
- Arranging education for children who cannot attend school because of health needs
- Supporting pupils at school with medical conditions
- Working together to improve school attendance
- Summary of responsibilities where a mental health issue is affecting attendance
- Arranging Alternative Provision
NHS ‘Is my child too ill for school?
‘Not fine in school’ (resources for families with children experiencing school attendance barriers)
School Attendance (Suffolk Local Offer information)