Authorised vs unauthorised absence
The difference between an authorised and an unauthorised absence is not whether the student had a reason – it is whether the school or college accepted that reason. Getting this consistent across a staff team is what makes attendance data worth reporting.
What authorised absence usually means
An absence is authorised when the person responsible for attendance has accepted the explanation in advance or afterwards. Typical examples include illness, a medical or dental appointment that could not be arranged outside teaching time, a religious observance day, a bereavement, or an approved interview, audition or competition. What matters is that a decision was made and recorded – not that a parent simply phoned in.
What is usually unauthorised
Absences with no explanation, explanations the setting does not accept, term-time holidays that were not agreed, oversleeping, missed transport, and arriving after the register has closed are commonly recorded as unauthorised. Lateness within the registration window is normally marked present but late, which is a different thing again – and worth tracking separately, because patterns of lateness often precede absence.
Policy sits with your setting
There is no universal list. Schools in England follow statutory Department for Education guidance and their own attendance policy; sixth forms, colleges, training providers and clubs set their own rules, often tied to funding or course requirements. Always check your setting's written policy before deciding a category, and agree as a team what evidence is needed for each one.
Keep the evidence with the record
The problem is rarely the decision – it is finding the note six months later when a funding audit, a parents' evening or a safeguarding conversation needs it. Save the medical letter, email or message alongside the student record, with the date it was approved and who approved it, so the mark in the register can always be explained.
My Register has an authorised absences section on each student profile for exactly this: upload the document, note the date approved, and it stays attached to the student.
Decide how each category affects the percentage
Most settings report overall absence (authorised plus unauthorised) and unauthorised absence separately. Whichever you choose, apply it to every student and every class the same way, or comparisons between groups become meaningless. Our guide on how to calculate student attendance covers the formula, and the days-missed calculator turns a percentage into something students and parents actually feel.
A register that keeps the categories straight
My Register separates present, late, authorised and unauthorised absence, stores the supporting documents, and flags patterns such as repeated absence on the same weekday before they become a serious problem. It is completely free for teachers and tutors.