Follow up on absences
Record absence reasons and organise a clear next check-in, using daily absence cases and term follow-up statuses.
Reviewed against the Workspace controls on 29 October 2026.
Overview
Record absence reasons and organise a clear next check-in, using daily absence cases and term follow-up statuses.
Get to know the screen
Practice example: all names, records and amounts are fictional. Options vary with your school’s curriculum, currency and access.
Phone example
Interface labels are shown in English. Follow the translated steps below to find each control. Follow the sequence, review the recorded information and choose the next step.
Who can use this feature
Open School attendance in the correct workspace. School-wide trends, absence notes, follow-up and rules require administrative or CSO privileges and attendance access.
Before you start
Confirm the school, academic year and date before recording anything. Check that the learner belongs to the selected class for that year.
First check the register and any correction. Daily absence cases require a saved absence or half-day mark; term follow-up also needs a calendar period and the school thresholds.
Required and optional fields
| Field | Requirement | Format or example | Prerequisite |
|---|---|---|---|
| Attendance date | Required in this form | Choose today or an earlier permitted date. Future dates are unavailable; the school can restrict changes to past days. | School date policy |
| Comment / reason / note | Optional | Optional in the form. Record the relevant observation or agreed next step; do not invent a reason. | Verified information |
| Follow-up status | Required in this form | For a term follow-up, choose Not started, Open, Waiting, Booked, In progress or Escalated, then save that row. | Learner and selected term |
| Term and level / class filters | Check before continuing | Check the selected period and available filter. These controls change the view, not the underlying attendance record. | Curriculum calendar and loaded data |
Daily actions: Mark excused or Escalate saves the case status and optional reason. Call parent records the next action. The learner and day are supplied by the row and selected date.
Picklist prerequisites
| Choice | Options come from | Earlier selection | If missing |
|---|---|---|---|
| Term and level / class filters | Curriculum calendar and loaded data | Term options come from the workspace curriculum calendar. Check the curriculum, academic year and term dates if the expected period is missing. | Level options come from the summary data. Follow-up class options come from learners on that list, so a class with no qualifying learners may not appear. |
Desktop walkthrough
Review the learner and selected day.
Screen walkthrough · 0:45Download GIF ↓Review the term and the learner’s pattern.
Screen walkthrough · 0:45Download GIF ↓- Open School attendance → Absence follow-up and confirm the day. Review Unexplained and the learner’s class before typing a factual Reason.
- Choose Mark excused or Escalate to save the reason with that case status. Mark excused moves the case into Excused; verify the saved reason there.
- Call parent saves that next action. It does not place a call or send an SMS. Complete the contact through the school’s agreed channel and record what was agreed.
- For repeated absences, open Learners to follow up. Select the term, class and reason filter; review the day strip before changing a status.
- Choose a follow-up status, type the agreed next action and select Save on that learner’s row. Wait for Follow-up updated, then revisit the row.
Mobile walkthrough
Review the learner and selected day.
Screen walkthrough · 0:45Download GIF ↓Review the term and the learner’s pattern.
Screen walkthrough · 0:45Download GIF ↓On a phone, close the navigation drawer and scroll down to the table. Swipe the table sideways to reach the status, note or action columns. Keep the learner name and selected period in mind, then save the intended row.
Save and verify
Check the daily case status and reason separately from the term follow-up. A note alone does not save until you select the relevant action or Save. Neither action changes the attendance mark or fee status.
Troubleshooting
The learner is missing from follow-up?
Check the day or term, class filters, underlying marks and school thresholds. Clear filters. A learner may be absent today without meeting the repeated-absence rule.
If saving fails, keep your notes, check the connection and read the error. Reopen the same class and date to check what was saved before submitting again.
