Persistent absences for pupils eligible for free school meals Education and skills
This indicator shows the percentage of pupils in state-funded primary, state-funded secondary and special schools who have been eligible for free school meals in the past 6 years that were persistently absent (those absent for 10% of schooling sessions) during the academic year, in England (state-funded schools), for academic years 2017/18 - 2023/24.
Map
Persistent absences for pupils eligible for free school meals
Percentage of FSM-eligible pupils in state-funded schools that were absent for 10% of academic year, 2023-24
Map for Persistent absences for pupils eligible for free school meals. The data is available to download below.
Source: Department for Education
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Line chart
Persistent absences for pupils eligible for free school meals
Percentage of FSM-eligible pupils in state-funded schools that were absent for 10% of academic year, 2017-18 to 2023-24
Source: Department for Education
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Bar chart
Persistent absences for pupils eligible for free school meals
Percentage of FSM-eligible pupils in state-funded schools that were absent for 10% of academic year, 2023-24
Source: Department for Education
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Table
Persistent absences for pupils eligible for free school meals
Percentage of FSM-eligible pupils in state-funded schools that were absent for 10% of academic year, 2017-18 to 2023-24
| E09000002 | Barking and Dagenham | 27.8 | 30.6 | 29.1 | 20.2 | 17.7 | 16.4 |
| E09000003 | Barnet | 25.7 | 30.6 | 27.8 | 16.5 | 14.2 | 14.1 |
| E08000016 | Barnsley | 36.9 | 35.5 | 38.5 | 23.6 | 22.7 | 22.6 |
| E06000022 | Bath and North East Somerset | 39.1 | 38.7 | 42.3 | 26.1 | 26.1 | 27.6 |
| E06000055 | Bedford | 33.5 | 37.0 | 36.7 | 21.4 | 19.7 | 21.1 |
| E09000004 | Bexley | 35.4 | 37.2 | 38.2 | 24.7 | 22.6 | 21.9 |
| E08000025 | Birmingham | 30.6 | 33.6 | 32.0 | 21.9 | 17.2 | 18.0 |
| E06000008 | Blackburn with Darwen | 34.8 | 37.4 | 36.7 | 24.1 | 20.3 | 19.8 |
| E06000009 | Blackpool | 36.8 | 37.2 | 35.3 | 21.3 | 19.2 | 18.3 |
| E08000001 | Bolton | 29.1 | 30.1 | 30.8 | 17.5 | 19.2 | 21.2 |
| E06000028 | Bournemouth | – | – | – | – | 23.8 | 23.7 |
| E06000058 | Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole | 35.6 | 37.7 | 38.7 | 24.6 | 43.7 | – |
| E06000036 | Bracknell Forest | 35.4 | 37.3 | 37.8 | 19.9 | 18.9 | 19.3 |
| E08000032 | Bradford | 38.9 | 41.3 | 41.3 | 29.5 | 22.7 | 21.7 |
| E09000005 | Brent | 26.2 | 30.0 | 26.1 | 18.1 | 14.3 | 15.7 |
| E06000043 | Brighton and Hove | 40.6 | 39.6 | 40.8 | 24.4 | 24.0 | 24.5 |
| E06000023 | Bristol | 41.9 | 43.8 | 41.6 | 31.1 | 24.0 | 23.3 |
| E09000006 | Bromley | 37.0 | 39.5 | 38.6 | 23.7 | 22.5 | 20.7 |
| E06000060 | Buckinghamshire | 39.3 | 41.9 | 41.2 | 25.6 | 23.7 | 25.3 |
| E08000002 | Bury | 34.9 | 34.6 | 34.6 | 22.8 | 21.2 | 22.0 |
| E08000033 | Calderdale | 34.3 | 36.3 | 36.2 | 23.2 | 19.4 | 18.3 |
| E10000003 | Cambridgeshire | 35.8 | 36.7 | 39.1 | 24.0 | 21.0 | 22.2 |
| E09000007 | Camden | 28.9 | 34.0 | 30.8 | 20.3 | 17.0 | 16.7 |
| E06000056 | Central Bedfordshire | 43.1 | 43.6 | 45.2 | 25.7 | 23.4 | 24.1 |
| E06000049 | Cheshire East | 36.0 | 37.3 | 40.4 | 26.8 | 23.0 | 24.0 |
| E06000050 | Cheshire West and Chester | 40.8 | 39.9 | 42.5 | 26.4 | 24.0 | 24.2 |
| E09000001 | City of London | 6.5 | 20.0 | 26.1 | 3.1 | 8.6 | 4.7 |
| E06000052 | Cornwall | 39.7 | 39.8 | 41.3 | 22.1 | 22.3 | 22.5 |
| E06000047 | County Durham | 37.3 | 38.0 | 40.0 | 22.3 | 19.9 | 20.2 |
| E08000026 | Coventry | 33.4 | 35.9 | 34.3 | 22.8 | 19.1 | 19.2 |
| E09000008 | Croydon | 30.5 | 33.3 | 31.1 | 19.5 | 17.8 | 17.6 |
| E06000063 | Cumberland | 35.9 | – | – | – | – | – |
| E10000006 | Cumbria | – | 39.2 | 38.9 | 20.6 | 21.6 | 21.8 |
| E06000005 | Darlington | 36.2 | 35.3 | 38.2 | 21.3 | 19.8 | 22.9 |
| E06000015 | Derby | 34.0 | 36.6 | 36.2 | 23.2 | 21.5 | 22.4 |
| E10000007 | Derbyshire | 32.2 | 33.8 | 36.8 | 21.1 | 20.4 | 20.7 |
| E10000008 | Devon | 38.4 | 39.9 | 42.4 | 27.5 | 21.2 | 20.3 |
| E08000017 | Doncaster | 34.4 | 36.7 | 41.2 | 25.9 | 21.6 | 23.7 |
| E06000059 | Dorset | 39.0 | 38.7 | 40.8 | 25.1 | 33.3 | – |
| E10000009 | Dorset | – | – | – | – | 23.1 | 23.7 |
| E08000027 | Dudley | 38.1 | 38.8 | 41.0 | 25.1 | 22.8 | 22.6 |
| E09000009 | Ealing | 24.8 | 28.3 | 26.5 | 18.0 | 15.7 | 14.7 |
| E06000011 | East Riding of Yorkshire | 36.3 | 36.0 | 38.8 | 20.8 | 20.5 | 21.6 |
| E10000011 | East Sussex | 40.9 | 40.4 | 38.4 | 26.2 | 24.0 | 24.8 |
| E09000010 | Enfield | 27.8 | 31.0 | 29.4 | 21.4 | 18.2 | 17.2 |
| E10000012 | Essex | 37.0 | 38.8 | 41.0 | 24.0 | 22.3 | 21.7 |
| E08000037 | Gateshead | 35.4 | 36.7 | 40.0 | 24.0 | 22.9 | 20.1 |
| E10000013 | Gloucestershire | 37.8 | 38.3 | 39.8 | 24.5 | 22.3 | 23.6 |
| E09000011 | Greenwich | 28.3 | 30.2 | 29.0 | 17.5 | 16.8 | 18.2 |
| E09000012 | Hackney | 23.8 | 27.7 | 23.6 | 15.4 | 13.0 | 13.2 |
| E06000006 | Halton | 35.6 | 35.9 | 39.1 | 25.9 | 21.5 | 23.2 |
| E09000013 | Hammersmith and Fulham | 28.6 | 31.7 | 28.5 | 18.7 | 17.5 | 17.8 |
| E10000014 | Hampshire | 36.0 | 37.2 | 38.0 | 23.8 | 22.8 | 22.5 |
| E09000014 | Haringey | 26.9 | 30.5 | 28.1 | 19.1 | 14.8 | 14.3 |
| E09000015 | Harrow | 28.8 | 35.2 | 29.9 | 20.0 | 16.9 | 15.7 |
| E06000001 | Hartlepool | 34.5 | 35.3 | 35.4 | 26.6 | 21.7 | 23.4 |
| E09000016 | Havering | 33.6 | 36.2 | 36.4 | 19.5 | 22.1 | 22.9 |
| E06000019 | Herefordshire | 35.3 | 37.3 | 40.6 | 25.1 | 22.1 | 22.3 |
| E10000015 | Hertfordshire | 37.8 | 39.3 | 39.4 | 23.5 | 23.1 | 23.9 |
| E09000017 | Hillingdon | 32.8 | 36.8 | 33.3 | 22.4 | 21.1 | 21.1 |
| E09000018 | Hounslow | 29.0 | 32.0 | 30.6 | 17.4 | 15.7 | 16.3 |
| E06000046 | Isle of Wight | 35.9 | 39.6 | 36.4 | 24.6 | 22.0 | 20.9 |
| E06000053 | Isles of Scilly | 62.5 | 45.5 | 55.6 | 36.4 | 8.3 | 15.4 |
| E09000019 | Islington | 29.7 | 33.3 | 29.5 | 20.2 | 16.0 | 16.8 |
| E09000020 | Kensington and Chelsea | 28.3 | 33.3 | 29.0 | 17.4 | 16.4 | 16.2 |
| E10000016 | Kent | 39.1 | 41.6 | 42.3 | 27.5 | 25.1 | 24.7 |
| E06000010 | Kingston upon Hull | 33.3 | 34.6 | 35.9 | 24.1 | 18.0 | 18.9 |
| E09000021 | Kingston upon Thames | 34.1 | 34.6 | 35.8 | 23.1 | 20.6 | 19.3 |
| E08000034 | Kirklees | 34.4 | 35.7 | 36.6 | 23.3 | 20.2 | 19.8 |
| E08000011 | Knowsley | 40.4 | 40.2 | 41.9 | 27.3 | 23.5 | 24.7 |
| E09000022 | Lambeth | 26.8 | 29.6 | 27.2 | 19.1 | 15.6 | 15.9 |
| E10000017 | Lancashire | 36.1 | 36.4 | 36.6 | 23.1 | 19.7 | 20.4 |
| E08000035 | Leeds | 36.8 | 38.0 | 37.0 | 23.2 | 21.4 | 21.6 |
| E06000016 | Leicester | 32.6 | 32.6 | 31.1 | 21.2 | 19.0 | 20.3 |
| E10000018 | Leicestershire | 37.1 | 36.8 | 38.6 | 24.8 | 22.9 | 23.1 |
| E09000023 | Lewisham | 28.0 | 30.4 | 27.4 | 18.3 | 15.4 | 15.6 |
| E10000019 | Lincolnshire | 34.8 | 35.2 | 38.5 | 23.1 | 21.4 | 20.9 |
| E08000012 | Liverpool | 36.2 | 36.6 | 36.4 | 25.1 | 21.4 | 23.4 |
| E06000032 | Luton | 28.1 | 33.5 | 32.9 | 19.7 | 16.5 | 18.3 |
| E08000003 | Manchester | 28.1 | 29.7 | 28.8 | 19.8 | 15.7 | 16.2 |
| E06000035 | Medway | 36.4 | 38.8 | 39.5 | 25.2 | 21.2 | 21.6 |
| E09000024 | Merton | 27.9 | 30.9 | 31.2 | 20.9 | 16.8 | 16.5 |
| E06000002 | Middlesbrough | 34.9 | 36.4 | 38.0 | 23.9 | 22.9 | 22.3 |
| E06000042 | Milton Keynes | 31.9 | 34.3 | 35.1 | 20.6 | 20.5 | 20.7 |
| E08000021 | Newcastle upon Tyne | 33.9 | 36.8 | 37.5 | 25.2 | 21.7 | 21.3 |
| E09000025 | Newham | 24.6 | 29.6 | 25.6 | 18.3 | 13.8 | 12.6 |
| E10000020 | Norfolk | 36.4 | 37.8 | 40.7 | 25.6 | 21.8 | 22.0 |
| E06000012 | North East Lincolnshire | 33.9 | 33.8 | 35.3 | 26.1 | 19.7 | 19.7 |
| E06000013 | North Lincolnshire | 33.7 | 34.8 | 39.2 | 25.3 | 20.6 | 20.3 |
| E06000061 | North Northamptonshire | 37.7 | 37.7 | 41.3 | – | – | – |
| E06000024 | North Somerset | 41.1 | 41.4 | 43.6 | 26.5 | 25.7 | 24.4 |
| E08000022 | North Tyneside | 34.2 | 33.7 | 35.0 | 18.7 | 19.0 | 20.1 |
| E06000065 | North Yorkshire | 39.0 | 37.7 | 40.1 | 25.0 | 24.0 | 24.4 |
| E10000021 | Northamptonshire | – | – | – | 23.5 | 20.8 | 21.5 |
| E06000057 | Northumberland | 36.2 | 35.6 | 39.4 | 24.6 | 20.0 | 20.8 |
| E06000018 | Nottingham | 33.4 | 35.2 | 33.4 | 23.2 | 18.3 | 18.1 |
| E10000024 | Nottinghamshire | 35.0 | 35.4 | 38.1 | 22.4 | 19.9 | 19.8 |
| E08000004 | Oldham | 32.2 | 35.0 | 34.2 | 25.0 | 18.9 | 19.0 |
| E10000025 | Oxfordshire | 39.5 | 40.6 | 41.2 | 25.2 | 24.2 | 23.9 |
| E06000031 | Peterborough | 31.9 | 35.0 | 36.2 | 21.3 | 18.1 | 18.6 |
| E06000026 | Plymouth | 39.5 | 40.8 | 44.3 | 23.1 | 21.7 | 20.5 |
| E06000029 | Poole | – | – | – | – | 20.5 | 20.2 |
| E06000044 | Portsmouth | 33.6 | 35.5 | 36.5 | 23.6 | 23.5 | 22.7 |
| E06000038 | Reading | 36.0 | 39.1 | 39.7 | 24.2 | 22.0 | 23.9 |
| E09000026 | Redbridge | 26.2 | 32.1 | 27.6 | 17.4 | 16.0 | 15.7 |
| E06000003 | Redcar and Cleveland | 33.5 | 33.5 | 35.8 | 21.0 | 21.7 | 23.4 |
| E09000027 | Richmond upon Thames | 33.5 | 37.3 | 39.3 | 24.0 | 20.1 | 21.5 |
| E08000005 | Rochdale | 36.1 | 35.7 | 37.2 | 23.7 | 20.3 | 19.8 |
| E08000018 | Rotherham | 38.2 | 38.8 | 40.7 | 23.7 | 22.1 | 21.5 |
| E06000017 | Rutland | 33.5 | 32.9 | 31.9 | 18.5 | 16.2 | 14.1 |
| E08000006 | Salford | 36.5 | 38.1 | 39.7 | 28.6 | 22.4 | 21.3 |
| E08000028 | Sandwell | 32.2 | 35.5 | 34.8 | 20.4 | 16.8 | 18.0 |
| E08000014 | Sefton | 41.1 | 40.8 | 42.3 | 27.5 | 22.9 | 23.2 |
| E08000019 | Sheffield | 38.1 | 40.2 | 37.8 | 28.7 | 22.9 | 23.1 |
| E06000051 | Shropshire | 37.8 | 37.3 | 42.0 | 23.8 | 21.9 | 23.3 |
| E06000039 | Slough | 30.0 | 36.1 | 33.8 | 23.6 | 17.2 | 17.3 |
| E08000029 | Solihull | 38.7 | 41.2 | 42.1 | 26.4 | 20.8 | 22.8 |
| E06000066 | Somerset | 38.9 | 38.9 | 40.8 | 24.7 | 23.1 | 22.5 |
| E06000025 | South Gloucestershire | 42.3 | 40.4 | 43.2 | 27.1 | 24.5 | 25.2 |
| E08000023 | South Tyneside | 34.4 | 31.9 | 34.9 | 19.7 | 20.8 | 18.7 |
| E06000045 | Southampton | 36.1 | 37.0 | 37.9 | 26.3 | 23.5 | 21.9 |
| E06000033 | Southend-on-Sea | 34.1 | 35.5 | 37.3 | 27.7 | 20.8 | 19.3 |
| E09000028 | Southwark | 23.5 | 26.4 | 24.9 | 17.4 | 14.1 | 13.8 |
| E08000013 | St. Helens | 37.2 | 37.6 | 43.1 | 27.7 | 22.1 | 21.3 |
| E10000028 | Staffordshire | 34.6 | 35.9 | 38.6 | 23.1 | 21.5 | 21.8 |
| E08000007 | Stockport | 38.9 | 39.6 | 39.8 | 25.3 | 23.4 | 26.2 |
| E06000004 | Stockton-on-Tees | 35.1 | 36.4 | 36.6 | 23.2 | 20.0 | 21.6 |
| E06000021 | Stoke-on-Trent | 31.8 | 34.7 | 37.0 | 24.8 | 18.7 | 20.0 |
| E10000029 | Suffolk | 36.1 | 36.8 | 39.4 | 23.1 | 20.7 | 20.3 |
| E08000024 | Sunderland | 39.0 | 38.0 | 39.8 | 23.4 | 24.0 | 22.0 |
| E10000030 | Surrey | 39.2 | 40.7 | 41.5 | 26.5 | 25.4 | 25.5 |
| E09000029 | Sutton | 33.7 | 36.2 | 38.5 | 25.3 | 21.6 | 21.9 |
| E06000030 | Swindon | 34.1 | 34.6 | 36.7 | 23.8 | 19.9 | 21.4 |
| E08000008 | Tameside | 29.9 | 28.8 | 31.3 | 18.3 | 18.0 | 19.6 |
| E06000020 | Telford and Wrekin | 33.5 | 32.9 | 38.0 | 24.6 | 19.6 | 21.9 |
| E06000034 | Thurrock | 31.0 | 33.0 | 33.9 | 20.1 | 21.2 | 18.6 |
| E06000027 | Torbay | 41.1 | 40.7 | 44.0 | 28.2 | 21.9 | 20.5 |
| E09000030 | Tower Hamlets | 23.0 | 26.3 | 22.1 | 13.6 | 12.6 | 12.0 |
| E08000009 | Trafford | 32.1 | 33.2 | 34.7 | 21.7 | 18.9 | 20.0 |
| E08000036 | Wakefield | 39.0 | 38.5 | 40.8 | 25.9 | 25.4 | 26.6 |
| E08000030 | Walsall | 34.7 | 36.1 | 36.2 | 24.2 | 19.4 | 19.5 |
| E09000031 | Waltham Forest | 28.3 | 30.6 | 29.0 | 22.7 | 16.3 | 17.7 |
| E09000032 | Wandsworth | 27.4 | 31.5 | 28.4 | 20.6 | 15.8 | 16.9 |
| E06000007 | Warrington | 31.0 | 30.5 | 34.1 | 20.9 | 19.8 | 22.1 |
| E10000031 | Warwickshire | 39.3 | 39.8 | 43.0 | 27.2 | 22.9 | 23.0 |
| E06000037 | West Berkshire | 39.5 | 38.9 | 40.1 | 26.1 | 23.4 | 22.2 |
| E06000062 | West Northamptonshire | 36.1 | 37.4 | 37.3 | – | – | – |
| E10000032 | West Sussex | 38.7 | 40.7 | 40.6 | 26.0 | 24.1 | 24.6 |
| E09000033 | Westminster | 29.8 | 33.0 | 29.4 | 19.1 | 13.8 | 13.4 |
| E06000064 | Westmorland and Furness | 35.0 | – | – | – | – | – |
| E08000010 | Wigan | 33.8 | 34.6 | 36.9 | 23.7 | 21.0 | 21.7 |
| E06000054 | Wiltshire | 36.8 | 36.7 | 39.9 | 23.6 | 22.5 | 22.9 |
| E06000040 | Windsor and Maidenhead | 38.3 | 40.9 | 39.4 | 24.8 | 22.8 | 21.6 |
| E08000015 | Wirral | 37.0 | 38.8 | 40.3 | 24.9 | 24.4 | 25.3 |
| E06000041 | Wokingham | 36.7 | 40.5 | 40.3 | 26.7 | 25.1 | 25.9 |
| E08000031 | Wolverhampton | 28.0 | 31.2 | 29.6 | 18.6 | 15.3 | 17.0 |
| E10000034 | Worcestershire | 40.1 | 40.9 | 44.1 | 25.6 | 24.0 | 23.6 |
| E06000014 | York | 42.4 | 40.5 | 42.7 | 27.1 | 23.2 | 26.0 |
Source: Department for Education
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Interpretation
Data is not available for academic year 2019/20.
Sessions recorded as not attending due to COVID circumstances are included as possible sessions in 2020/21 and 2021/22 only, but not as an absence within absence rates.
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Other indicators
Persistent absences for pupils eligible for free school meals is one of 77 local indicators on the Explore local statistics service. See the full list of local indicators.