By Gary Eason Education editor, BBC News website

Schools might object if pupils go shopping, but will not count them

Children who miss school during the rest of the summer term will not be counted in the official annual absence statistics for the year in England.

Schools are required to report pupils' attendance from September up to the end of May only.

Officials say this is a long-standing arrangement with schools to give a fair reflection of attendance patterns.

But opposition politicians say the statistics do not show the true scale of truancy and should be changed.

It means the number of days pupils miss - with or without permission - is higher than the amount ministers already regard as unacceptable.

Average absences

Official statistics on attendance describe the half-day sessions - that is, mornings and afternoons - missed by pupils aged five to 16.

In England, the average authorised absence was 23 half days, while 696,328 children were absent without permission, on average for 15 half days.

In primary schools authorised absence averaged 17 half days and unauthorised absence, eight half days.

The Department for Education and Skills (DfES) said these statistics covered about 308 half-day sessions, or 81% of the school year.

Schools are required to be open for 380 half-day sessions (190 days) each year.

It is ludicrous to count the number of days pupils play truant for only part of a school year Ed Davey Liberal Democrats

Lib Dem education spokesman Ed Davey said: "It is ludicrous to count the number of days pupils play truant for only part of a school year.

"If we are to measure school improvements and the impact of government policies we need statistics we can rely on.

"By not measuring levels of truancy properly the government is not facing up to the true scale of the problem.

"Now this has been highlighted I hope the department will change the way they report unauthorised absences."

Shadow education secretary David Cameron said not collecting and publishing the information sent the wrong signal to schools, parents and pupils.

"With the exception of children sitting GCSEs and A-levels, children should be in school from now until the end of term.

"There is no excuse for not collecting this information and there should be no excuse for schools to slacken off on efforts to deal with truancy."

Scotland

In Scotland, figures for attendance do relate to the whole year - yet show fewer absences than in England.

For many schools, the year is 380 half days, although in the Lothians and Edinburgh and parts of Highland there are 342 longer half-day sessions.

Last year the average absence per pupil in primary schools - authorised and unauthorised - was 18 half days and in secondary schools it was 37 half days.

In Wales, statistics for secondary schools work the same way as those in England, counting the school year from September to May and omitting the last seven weeks or so.

Absences last year were almost 30 half days per pupil.

A spokesman for the Welsh assembly said: "After the May bank holiday it is the start of the examination season, which would have an obvious marked impact on attendance figures, particularly public examinations."

In primary schools the Welsh figures do now cover the whole year and showed 26 half day absences per pupil in 2003-04.

Study leave

The DfES said the English statistics were reported as they were by agreement with schools, and to cover the whole year would not give a realistic pattern of attendance.

But schools were still taking the register throughout the summer term, a spokeswoman said.

One issue was study leave for pupils in Year 11 taking their GCSE exams, which confused the picture, she said.

In Scotland, study leave used to be described as authorised absence. Since 2003 it has been regarded as falling within the definition of attendance, if organised by the school.

In February last year, the then school standards minister in England, David Miliband, said he was considering banning study leave.

"Study leave ... for a lot of boys especially ... has become video game leave," he said.