Effect of bad weather on attendance records

Dear Mr Gall

Thank you for your e-mail.

Our Ref: CAS-118280-2PFFZ7

In order for your request to be dealt with effectively I have forwarded it
to the School's Duty Desk for a response.

A member of this department will reply to your request as soon as
possible.

However should you require any further assistance please do not hesitate
to contact us.

Regards

Chris Rothwell

Ofsted - National Business Unit

TEL: 08456 404040

-------Original Message

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Hello Julian

Thank you for your query which I have received on the helpdesk.

To answer your first two points you need to contact the DCSF.

For the third point:

3. Does Ofsted take into account the effect of bad weather on

school attendance when compiling data and reports on schools?

I have summarised an extract from the latest guidance for inspecting
attendance which is available from the Ofsted web site under forms and
guidance, schools, supplementary guidance in the zip file.

Inspectors judge attendance in comparison to national figures under
`Outcomes: how well are pupils doing, taking account of any variation?'
The judgement on attendance is taken into account when judging `the extent
to which pupils develop workplace and other skills that will contribute to
their economic wellbeing'. The school's work to promote good attendance
and reduce absence is judged in care, guidance and support as part of the
evaluation of `How effective is the provision?', It is essential that
inspectors make the distinction between the outcome - actual attendance -
and the provision made to promote good attendance when making their
judgements and when reporting.

The school's efforts and strategies and their effectiveness should be
taken into account when judging care, guidance and support, and commented
on in the text of the report when appropriate.

Inspectors should evaluate how much the school knows about the attendance
patterns of groups of learners and the effectiveness of systems to alert
them to changes in pupils' attendance.

When judging attendance inspectors should consider all the evidence
available, including:

n figures for overall and persistent absence, in comparison with
national averages, shown in RAISEonline

n the most up-to-date attendance and absence data held by the school

n the attendance of different groups of pupils,

n the proportion of pupils who are persistently absent, which is
identified nationally as absence of more than 20%

n patterns of absence - is there more absence at particular times of
year.

As you will see, although inspectors are charged with evaluating
attendance against the national figure, there is opportunity for schools
to present current data to show attendance levels.

I hope this information is helpful.

Kind regards

Eileen M Mulgrew HMI

Quality Assurance National Team

On behalf of Ann Talboys HMI

Divisional Manager

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