The short answers
Should schools give attendance certificates?
The DfE's guidance says schools may praise and reward improvements in attendance at year group, class and individual level, where it is done sensitively and without discrimination. Certificates are one way to do that, and they work best when they recognise improvement, not only perfect attendance.
Are 100% attendance awards fair?
They can leave out children who were genuinely ill, have a medical condition or SEND, or have a young carer's responsibilities, however hard they have tried. Many schools pair them with awards for improvement, so a child who has gone from 85% to 95% is recognised too.
What should an attendance certificate say?
The child's name, what they achieved, and the two dates it covers, so a family can see it is a real period and check it against their own memory of it. Say what was good, whether that is every session attended or a big step up.
How often should schools give attendance certificates?
There is no rule. Short periods, such as a few weeks, give more children a chance to be recognised and to see a fresh start; a whole year is a bigger award for fewer children. Many schools use both.
Two kinds of award worth giving
Every session, between two dates
Perfect attendance over a period the school chooses, so it can be a half term, a month, or the weeks since a fresh start.
Moving up
A pupil whose attendance has moved into a higher band between two points in the year. This is the award that reaches the children and families who have worked hardest to change something.
Where this comes from
- Working together to improve school attendanceThe DfE's statutory guidance, 2026 edition: what schools, trusts and local authorities are expected to do.
Related guides: improving attendance in schools, the senior attendance champion. Every guide is listed on the guides page.
Certificates, printed from your data
adsum works out who has earned a certificate from the exports your MIS already produces, every session between two dates or moving up a band, and prints them with the dates on. With the session-level export, the dates can be any two you choose.
Or ask us for a trial on your own school's data.