School attendance problems are no longer a marginal issue. This report synthesises evidence from an OECD survey, literature and international large-scale assessments to outline drivers and consequences of school absences. It takes stock of policies and practices for supporting school attendance and distils key messages and policy pointers emerging from the evidence presented.

This report analyses the disproportionate use of school disciplinary absences on First Nations students, students with disability and students living in out-of-home care and the intersection with poverty. It positions the issue as not only a matter for education policy and practice, but one requiring systemic reform, emphasising inequitable system design over individual behaviour.

The report on government services provides information on the equity, effectiveness and efficiency of government services in Australia. This report provides performance reporting for early childhood education and care (ECEC), school education, and vocational education and training (VET). It finds increasing serious incidents reported in ECEC, school attendance decreasing and VET outcomes improving.

School attendance in Australia is a big and growing problem. Federal, state, and territory Education Ministers have committed to getting school attendance back to pre-pandemic rates by the end of the decade. However, this analysis shows there is a long way to go. The brief proposes that governments should take five key first steps.

This report explores and highlights the experiences of children, young people and their families who have been affected by School Disciplinary Absences (SDAs) involving suspension or exclusion from Queensland state schools. It finds that SDAs can be discriminatory with some cohorts of students receiving SDAs at a higher rate than average.