School refusal is often better understood as Emotionally Based School Avoidance (EBSA) where a child or young person experiences significant emotional distress connected with attending school.
EBSA is not simply “bad behaviour”, laziness or defiance. The child may want to attend school but find the emotional, sensory, social or psychological demands overwhelming.
Difficulties can be linked to anxiety, bullying, unmet SEND, autism, ADHD, dyslexia, trauma, sensory overload, academic pressure, friendship problems, mental health difficulties, safeguarding concerns or experiences that make the school environment feel unsafe.
Several factors can exist at the same time.
The priority should be to understand why attendance has become difficult, identify the barriers and put appropriate support in place.
If a child is in immediate danger, at risk of serious harm or experiencing a medical emergency, call 999.
Important — EBSA Is a Description of the Difficulty
It is a useful description for attendance difficulty driven by emotional distress.
The underlying cause may include mental health, disability, SEND, bullying, safeguarding, health conditions or a combination of factors.
Attendance decisions, absence codes, education duties and legal rights depend on the child's actual circumstances — not simply on whether the term EBSA has been used.
1. What is EBSA?
EBSA describes difficulty attending school because attendance or aspects of school trigger significant emotional distress.
Before School
- Crying
- Panic
- Severe anxiety
- Refusing to get dressed
- Freezing or shutting down
- Being unable to leave home
Physical Symptoms
- Headaches
- Stomach aches
- Nausea
- Sickness
- Fatigue
- Physical symptoms linked to anxiety
At School
- Attending some lessons but not others
- Repeated visits to pastoral or medical staff
- Hiding or withdrawing
- Leaving lessons
- Becoming overwhelmed
Emotional Responses
- Anger
- Fear
- Panic
- Distress
- Shame
- Feeling misunderstood
Patterns
- Difficulty after weekends
- Difficulty after holidays
- Difficulty during transitions
- Difficulty before particular lessons
- Difficulty on particular days
After School
- Extreme exhaustion
- Meltdowns
- Withdrawal
- Emotional release after masking
- Difficulty recovering for the next day
Waiting until attendance becomes extremely low can make recovery and reintegration more difficult.
2. Common Causes and Contributing Factors
There is rarely one universal cause.
EBSA may develop when the demands of school become greater than the support or coping resources available to the child.
Mental Health
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Panic attacks
- Social anxiety
- Low mood
- Trauma
SEND
- Autism
- ADHD
- Dyslexia
- DLD
- Learning difficulties
- Unidentified SEND
Sensory & Environmental
- Noise
- Crowded corridors
- Bright lighting
- Busy classrooms
- Lunch halls
- Frequent transitions
Relationships
- Bullying
- Friendship problems
- Social isolation
- Conflict with peers
- Fear of particular adults
Academic Pressure
- Work being too difficult
- Exam stress
- Homework pressure
- Fear of failure
- Fear of being embarrassed
Life Events
- Bereavement
- Family stress
- Illness
- Moving school
- Relationship breakdown
- Other significant change
For example, an autistic pupil may experience sensory overload, bullying, academic anxiety and exhaustion at the same time.
3. Early Warning Signs
EBSA often develops gradually.
- Increasing lateness
- Drop in attendance
- Missing particular lessons
- Repeated requests to go home
- Frequent minor illness before school
- Headaches
- Stomach pain
- Nausea
- Sunday-evening distress
- Difficulty sleeping
- Morning panic
- Difficulty getting ready
- Withdrawal
- Irritability
- Reduced confidence
- Emotional outbursts
- Repeated medical-room visits
- Repeated pastoral visits
- Seeking a safe adult frequently
- Avoiding particular places
- Avoiding certain teachers
- Avoiding lunch or break
- Avoiding changing rooms or assemblies
A pattern of increasing distress should trigger curiosity about what has changed rather than waiting until the child stops attending completely.
4. What Parents and Carers Can Do
Try to understand what the child experiences rather than beginning from the assumption that they are simply refusing to cooperate.
Explain the distress in writing and ask for a meeting.
Ask whether difficulties involve SEND, bullying, particular lessons, sensory factors, relationships, workload or mental health.
Existing support may no longer be sufficient or SEND may not yet have been identified.
Support should be specific, written and reviewable.
Record attendance attempts, physical symptoms, emotional distress, triggers and support offered.
This might include the GP, NHS mental-health services or other relevant professionals.
Helpful Questions to Ask the Child
- What feels hardest about school?
- Is there a person, place, lesson or time of day that feels unsafe?
- Are there noises, smells, lights or crowds that hurt?
- Is bullying involved?
- Is the work too difficult or overwhelming?
- Is there a fear of getting something wrong?
- Are break times or lunch particularly difficult?
- Are you masking how distressed you feel while at school?
- What would make tomorrow feel slightly easier?
Some children communicate better while walking, drawing, playing, driving in the car or using written messages rather than through direct questioning.
5. What Schools Should Do
Attendance support should identify the barriers preventing successful attendance rather than focusing only on the percentage figure.
Relationship Support
- Named trusted adult
- Safe arrival routine
- Regular check-ins
- Pastoral support
Environmental Support
- Quiet space
- Reduced sensory demands
- Alternative arrival route
- Alternative lunch arrangements
Education Support
- SEND review
- Adapted work
- Reduced language load
- Support with missed learning
Attendance Support
- Individual attendance plan
- Gradual reintegration
- Review meetings
- Local-authority involvement
Mental Health
- Pastoral support
- School counselling where available
- Mental-health referral
- GP/NHS liaison where appropriate
Safety
- Investigate bullying
- Respond to safeguarding concerns
- Record disclosures
- Act on unsafe situations
Attendance expectations remain important, but pressure without addressing the cause of severe distress can fail to solve the underlying problem.
6. EBSA and SEND
Attendance difficulties can sometimes be a sign that special educational needs are unidentified or not being adequately supported.
Autism
- Sensory overload
- Masking
- Social demands
- Unexpected changes
- Exhaustion
ADHD
- Executive-function difficulties
- Emotional regulation
- Organisation
- Repeated sanctions
- Academic overwhelm
Literacy / Dyslexia
- Fear of reading aloud
- Writing pressure
- Repeated failure experiences
- Homework stress
Speech & Language
- Difficulty following instructions
- Difficulty explaining problems
- Social misunderstandings
- Classroom anxiety
Learning Needs
- Work being inaccessible
- Too much cognitive demand
- Repeated frustration
- Low confidence
SEMH
- Anxiety
- Depression
- Trauma
- Emotional distress
Parents Can Ask For
- SENCO meeting
- Review of existing SEN Support
- Written SEND Support Plan
- Reasonable adjustments
- External professional advice
- Educational Psychologist involvement where appropriate
- Specialist-teacher input
- EHC needs assessment where appropriate
Support should respond to the child's educational needs and barriers.
7. EBSA and Mental Health
EBSA may involve anxiety, panic, depression, trauma or other emotional distress.
Primary Care
- GP appointment
- Discuss physical symptoms
- Discuss anxiety or low mood
- Ask about local services
School Support
- Pastoral team
- Counselling where available
- Mental Health Support Team where available
- Trusted adult
Specialist Support
- NHS children and young people's mental-health services
- CAMHS where appropriate
- Urgent mental-health services where required
If a child is at immediate risk of serious harm or there is an emergency, call 999.
If urgent mental-health help is needed but it is not an immediate emergency, use the NHS urgent mental-health guidance below.
8. Attendance, Fines and Enforcement
Parents have legal responsibilities concerning their child's education and school attendance.
However, attendance difficulties linked to illness, mental health, SEND, disability, bullying or safeguarding concerns should be properly understood and supported.
Schools and local authorities are expected to work with pupils and families to understand barriers and provide appropriate attendance support.
Legal interventions remain available where support has not worked, is not engaged with, or is not appropriate.
Parents Should
- Keep school informed
- Explain the reason for absence
- Provide relevant evidence where available
- Attend support meetings where possible
- Request support in writing
- Ask for barriers to be recorded
- Keep copies of correspondence
- Seek advice quickly if enforcement is threatened
Penalty Notices — England
The current national framework includes escalating penalty notices for unauthorised absence.
First Penalty Notice
£80 if paid within 21 days.
This rises to £160 if paid after 21 days but within the applicable 28-day period.
Second Notice
A second attendance-related penalty notice to the same parent for the same child within a three-year rolling period is £160.
Further Cases
A third penalty notice cannot be issued to the same parent for the same child within the three-year rolling period.
Other action, which may include prosecution, can then be considered.
The attendance framework contains requirements about considering support, the circumstances and whether a penalty notice is an appropriate intervention.
Do not ignore attendance letters, Notices to Improve, penalty notices or court correspondence.
Keep evidence showing the child's difficulties, communication with school and support requested.
9. Health Needs and Education When a Child Cannot Attend
Some children cannot attend school, or can attend only intermittently, because of physical or mental health needs.
Department for Education statutory guidance explains how local authorities should ensure that compulsory school-age children who cannot attend school because of health needs still receive suitable education.
Depending on the child's circumstances, education may involve:
Home-Based Education Provision
Local-authority-arranged tuition may be appropriate in some cases.
Hospital Education
Education may be available where a child is receiving hospital treatment.
Online / Remote Support
Remote learning may form part of an appropriate education package in some circumstances.
Alternative Provision
Another form of educational provision may be needed where mainstream attendance is temporarily or longer-term impossible.
Specialist Provision
Some pupils may require specialist education or a different placement.
Reintegration
Education away from school should normally include planning for appropriate reintegration where returning to school is suitable.
Where a child cannot access school for a significant period, families should ask what suitable education will be provided and which body is responsible.
10. Reintegration Plans
A successful return should address the reason attendance became difficult rather than merely increase hours.
Start Small
- Realistic first steps
- Achievable attendance goals
- Avoid sudden excessive demands
Safe Arrival
- Named entrance
- Trusted adult
- Quiet arrival
- Avoid crowded entry where needed
Safe Space
- Agreed quiet space
- Clear access arrangements
- Adult who understands the plan
Sensory Support
- Reduce sensory triggers
- Alternative lunch arrangements
- Movement breaks
- Reduced transition pressure
Communication
- Clear written plan
- Family-school contact
- Named person for problems
- Child knows what will happen
Review
- Regular review dates
- Record progress
- Record distress
- Change the plan when needed
Increasing attendance rapidly without addressing bullying, SEND, sensory overload, anxiety or unsafe situations may cause the plan to fail.
Part-Time or Reduced Timetables
A reduced timetable may sometimes form part of a carefully planned temporary reintegration arrangement.
Families should ask for:
- The purpose of the reduced timetable
- The agreed hours
- The education available outside those hours
- A review date
- The plan for increasing access
- The SEND or mental-health support accompanying it
11. Reasonable Adjustments
Where a child's difficulties meet the legal definition of disability, schools may have duties to make reasonable adjustments.
Arrival
- Flexible arrival arrangements
- Quiet entry
- Named entrance
- Trusted adult meeting the child
Sensory
- Quiet space
- Reduced noise
- Movement breaks
- Alternative lunch space
Learning
- Written instructions
- Reduced task load where appropriate
- Extra processing time
- Accessible materials
Transitions
- Leave lessons early where appropriate
- Reduce crowded transitions
- Advance warning of changes
Homework
- Review excessive workload
- Flexible deadlines where reasonable
- Prioritised work
Behaviour
- Consider disability-related behaviour
- Use regulation support
- Avoid sanctions that worsen disability barriers
A diagnosis does not automatically create the same adjustments for every child.
The relevant question is what disadvantage the child experiences and what reasonable steps could reduce it.
12. Bullying, Safety and Safeguarding
Attendance difficulty should never be treated solely as an attendance problem where the child says they are unsafe.
Possible Safeguarding Concerns
- Physical bullying
- Sexual harassment
- Online abuse
- Threats
- Exploitation
- Abuse by peers or adults
School Response
- Listen to the child
- Record the concern
- Tell the safeguarding lead
- Investigate appropriately
- Protect the child
- Follow safeguarding procedures
Attendance targets must not override safeguarding.
England's current Keeping Children Safe in Education 2026 guidance requires schools and colleges to take a child-centred approach and act promptly on safeguarding concerns.
13. Legal Rights
Rights depend on the child's circumstances and which part of the United Kingdom they are educated in.
England
Suitable Education
Parents must ensure children receive suitable education, and schools/local authorities also have statutory responsibilities within the education system.
SEND
SEND duties may apply where special educational needs contribute to attendance difficulties.
EHCP Assessment
Parents can request an EHC needs assessment from the local authority where they believe statutory assessment may be necessary.
Disability
Disabled pupils are protected from unlawful discrimination and may require reasonable adjustments.
Health-Related Absence
Local-authority duties may arise where a child cannot attend school because of health needs.
Safeguarding
Schools have safeguarding duties and should act on concerns about a child's welfare or safety.
Education Support Across the UK
Wales
Wales uses Additional Learning Needs and Individual Development Plans.
Welsh Government attendance guidance emphasises belonging, engagement, participation and joint work between schools, families and local authorities.
Scotland
Scotland uses the Additional Support for Learning framework.
Current Scottish attendance guidance emphasises positive relationships, communication and support for barriers to attendance.
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland operates its own SEN and attendance systems through schools and the Education Authority.
14. Evidence Standards
Good evidence can help families explain the problem, secure support and reduce misunderstandings about why attendance is difficult.
Attendance Evidence
- Attendance records
- Late marks
- Attendance codes
- Patterns by lesson or day
Health Evidence
- Medical letters
- GP notes
- CAMHS evidence
- Counselling reports
- Therapy reports
SEND Evidence
- SEN Support plans
- EHCP documents
- Professional reports
- Assessment records
School Evidence
- School emails
- Behaviour records
- Pastoral records
- Bullying reports
- Meeting notes
Family Evidence
- Parent diary
- Messages
- Records of morning distress
- Requests for support
Child's Voice
- Child's description of difficulties
- Drawings
- Written messages
- Communication preferences
EBSA Diary
A simple daily record can reveal patterns.
- Date
- Sleep
- Mood
- Physical symptoms
- Trigger
- Lesson or school event
- Attendance attempt
- Level of distress
- Support tried
- Outcome
- What helped
- What made things worse
Useful evidence explains:
- What happened
- What caused distress
- What support was requested
- What support was actually provided
- Whether it worked
15. Accountability & Complaints
If support is inadequate, families can take structured steps rather than allowing the situation to drift.
Ask for relevant people such as the attendance lead, SENCO and pastoral lead to attend.
A school complaint does not necessarily pause:
- An EHCP appeal deadline
- A discrimination claim deadline
- An attendance-enforcement process
Get advice promptly where a formal decision or legal notice has been issued.
16. Advocacy, Advice & Family Support
Families may need help from more than one service.
School Team
- Class teacher
- Form tutor
- Pastoral lead
- Attendance lead
- Designated safeguarding lead
SENCO
Ask the SENCO to review whether unmet or unidentified SEND is contributing to attendance difficulties.
GP / NHS
Health professionals can assess physical symptoms, anxiety, mental health and other health concerns.
YoungMinds
Information for families about school anxiety, refusal and young people's mental health.
17. Official Sources & Quick Help
The main information is already explained on this page. These links allow families to go directly to official guidance or specialist support.
School Attendance
Mental Health & Attendance
Health Needs & Education
Mental Health
Safeguarding
Complaints
Independent Help
Key Message
School refusal and Emotionally Based School Avoidance should be understood as a sign that something is making attendance difficult or distressing.
Severe distress should not simply be labelled as defiance, laziness or bad behaviour.
The most effective response is usually early, calm and coordinated support that identifies the reason behind the difficulty and removes or reduces barriers.
This may involve attendance staff, the SENCO, pastoral support, mental-health services, health professionals, safeguarding staff, the local authority and the family working together.
Where SEND or disability is involved, support and reasonable adjustments should be considered.
Where a child cannot attend because of health needs, families should ask what suitable education will be arranged during the period they cannot access school.
Reintegration should normally address the cause of the distress rather than simply increasing attendance hours as quickly as possible.
Families should keep clear evidence, ask for written plans and record what support was actually delivered.
If support is not adequate, families can use complaints, SEND, disability, education or appeal routes appropriate to the particular problem.
Right First Time UK — Information Notice
Right First Time UK provides general public information, awareness resources and signposting.
We are not a school, local authority, NHS service, mental-health service, safeguarding authority, SEND Tribunal, law firm or regulated legal advice provider.
School refusal and EBSA can have many different causes. Support should therefore be based on the individual child and the reasons behind their attendance difficulties.
The detailed SEND, EHCP, attendance-enforcement and health-needs information on this page primarily describes the system in England. Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have separate education systems and legal frameworks.
If a child is in immediate danger, at risk of serious harm or there is a medical emergency, call 999.
Always check current official guidance and seek appropriate education, health, SEND, safeguarding or legal advice where required.