Three Liverpool secondary schools are among the worst in England for unauthorised absences, according to new data from the Department for Education. The figures cover the autumn and spring terms of the 2025/26 academic year, when nearly 12 million school days were missed without authorisation across the country.
National absence rates remain high
Across all state-funded secondary schools in England, unauthorised absences made up around 2.9% of all school sessions in those two terms. While that figure has dropped slightly over the last two years, it is still around twice as high as it was before the pandemic.
This works out as the equivalent of around 11.7 million school days skipped across the two terms. While around 1.1 million were lost to both term-time holidays and lateness, the vast majority - 9.3 million - were due to “other” reasons. These can include missing school for family birthdays, shopping trips, car trouble, or most often children skipping school without their parents’ knowledge or permission.
Liverpool schools in the top 20
The Reach data unit has compiled a list of the top 20 secondary schools in the country with the worst unauthorised absence rates in that period. The list includes two schools run by Dixons Academies Trust - in Croxteth and Fazakerley. The other Liverpool school to feature is Notre Dame Catholic Academy in Everton.
Liverpool’s Notre Dame Catholic Academy had an unauthorised absence rate of 11.1%, while Dixons Croxteth Academy recorded 11.0% and Dixons Fazakerley Academy 10.1%. Other schools on the list include Co-op Academy Leeds (14.4%), Leeds East Academy (12.3%), and The Basildon Upper Academy (11.5%).
Trust responds to figures
A spokesperson for Dixons Academies told the ECHO: “These figures relate to unauthorised absence, which should not simply be equated with truancy. We are not satisfied with attendance at either school and there is more to do, but both have improved significantly from very challenging starting points.
“At Croxteth, Ofsted found that attendance had improved ‘exceedingly quickly’ and recognised the highly effective work to remove barriers to attendance. Our staff go to extraordinary lengths to support children and families, and we will keep doing that while building schools where every child feels they belong. More broadly, we are incredibly proud of the progress being made across our Liverpool schools, with all three in the top 20% nationally for improved attainment this year.”
The ECHO also approached Notre Dame Catholic Academy for a comment.
