The school attendance letter you need today

Penalty notices are meant for unauthorised absence, and the DfE's statutory guidance says support should come first for pupils whose attendance is affected by SEND, disability or mental health. In practice some families still receive warnings and fines, which is why making written representations matters: they put the school and local authority on notice that the absence is need-related, and fines issued in those circumstances are frequently withdrawn.

In England a penalty notice is £80 per parent, per child if paid within 21 days, rising to £160 if paid within 28 days. A second penalty notice for the same child within 3 years is charged at the flat rate of £160 with no discount, and the national threshold for considering a notice is 10 sessions (5 school days) of unauthorised absence within 10 school weeks. There is no right of appeal against a penalty notice, but you can make representations before one is issued and the authority can withdraw it.

A notice to improve is the formal warning step before a penalty notice: the school or local authority sets out the attendance that is expected over a set period, and if unauthorised absence continues a fine can follow without further warning. If your child's absence is driven by anxiety, SEND or unmet needs, respond to a notice to improve in writing straight away: explain the barriers, ask for support to be put in place, and ask for need-related absences to be coded correctly. The letter builder on this page produces exactly that response.

EBSA (emotionally based school avoidance) is the term professionals now use for what many people call school refusal: non-attendance driven by anxiety and emotional distress around school rather than truancy. It is common in autistic children and children with ADHD, sensory differences or unmet needs at school. The right response is identifying and supporting the underlying need: a phased return, adjustments, a key adult, and where needed an EHC needs assessment, rather than warnings and fines. If you searched for a school refusal letter template, the EBSA support letter above is the one to use.

Yes. The DfE attendance guidance allows illness coding for mental as well as physical health, and says schools should not routinely demand medical evidence. If a school insists every anxiety absence is unauthorised, it is worth asking, in writing, for the absences to be coded as illness and for the school to specify exactly what evidence it needs, bearing in mind GPs often do not provide attendance letters.

Only as a temporary, agreed measure in exceptional circumstances, with a plan and a review date leading back to full-time education. All children of compulsory school age are entitled to full-time education, and a reduced timetable must not become the permanent arrangement. If school cannot meet your child's needs full-time, the conversation should move to an EHC needs assessment or alternative provision.

Section 19 places a duty on the local authority to arrange suitable education for children of compulsory school age who, because of illness, exclusion or otherwise, would not receive it. Courts have confirmed it covers children too anxious or unwell to attend their named school. If your child is out of school with nothing in place, a written section 19 request to the local authority is often the step that unlocks provision.

Some families choose elective home education, but doing it to escape fines or a failing placement means the local authority's duties to your child largely fall away, along with the route to an EHCP-backed placement. Before deregistering, it is usually worth exhausting the support routes first: written requests, section 19, and an EHC needs assessment. Talk it through with someone independent first.