Attendance legal intervention and support assessment procedure — Working together to improve school attendance: July 2026

Attendance legal intervention and support assessment procedure

Use this procedure when a maintained or academy school in England is deciding whether to support or pursue attendance legal intervention for an individual pupil. The decision should reflect the circumstances of the individual case, the support available, and relevant safeguarding duties.

1. Assess the individual circumstances

Consider the individual circumstances of the family before deciding whether to use an attendance legal intervention. The assessment should identify the factors relevant to the pupil's attendance, the family's circumstances, and any safeguarding considerations.

2. Consider available attendance support

Identify suitable forms of attendance support currently available from the school and, where necessary, from other services and agencies in the area.

Assess whether each identified form of support is appropriate to the individual case. For support that is appropriate, consider whether it has already been provided or could be provided now instead of taking legal action.

3. Decide whether legal intervention remains necessary

Where support has been provided, or could be provided instead of legal action, consider that support in the decision. Where action remains necessary, select the intervention that is most appropriate to the individual circumstances of the case and is intended to change parental behaviour.

The available legal interventions are attendance contracts, education supervision orders, attendance prosecution, parenting orders, and penalty notices.

4. Consider safeguarding

When deciding whether to use an intervention, have regard to safeguarding duties. Record the safeguarding considerations relevant to the case, including any safeguarding assessment or consultation that informed the decision.

5. Record the decision

Record the individual case assessment, the support considered, whether appropriate support has been provided or could be provided instead, the safeguarding considerations, the intervention selected or the reason for not proceeding with legal action, and the rationale for the decision.