About Attendance Management Plans#

Starting from Term 1, 2026, all state and state-integrated schools in New Zealand will be required to implement an Attendance Management Plan. These plans aim to improve student attendance by providing clear pathways to identify and address absences.

What school boards will need to do#

You will need to:

• develop and implement an Attendance Management Plan including publishing it online by the start of Term 1, 2026
• have regard to attendance guidelines from the Ministry of Education (like the Stepped Attendance Response), when developing your plan
• periodically review your plan.

What plans will need to include#

Plans will need to set out:

• a clear process to identify and respond to student absences
• strategies or interventions at different attendance 'thresholds' (based on numbers of days absent in a term).

Additional requirements for Attendance Management Plans#

Later this year new regulations will be developed to set out the requirements on absence thresholds, how schools will identify and respond to barriers to attendance, and review periods for plans.

When these regulations are released, you’ll need to update your plan to make sure it meets the new requirements.

Resources available#

Stepped Attendance Response – STAR#

The Stepped Attendance Response (STAR) sets expectations for school, student, parent/guardian, Ministry of Education and broader system responses to student absence. Schools are encouraged to use the STAR as a framework or to integrate key elements into their current attendance policies and procedures.

STAR