Attendance Specialist

Essex County Council; Basildon; Hybrid; GBP 25,000 - 36,000; Full time

Job summary

Essex County Council is seeking an Attendance Specialist to work with schools to improve pupil attendance and support early intervention. The role involves analyzing data to identify trends, developing strategies, and collaborating with partners to deliver effective solutions.

A driving licence or mobility to cover an operational area is required. The position supports flexible working arrangements in a dynamic public service environment.

Qualifications

• Experience in analysing and interpreting data to identify trends and support improvement planning.
• Evidence of continuing professional development and expert knowledge in relevant professional area.
• Practical experience within a school environment or enforcement environment.
• Resilience and ability to challenge others to ensure progress.
• Ability to understand and respond to different audiences and recognise impact on the wider organisation.
• Strong communication and negotiation skills to persuade and influence in an agile environment.

Responsibilities

• Develop plans and initiatives to support schools in improving pupil attendance and define escalation processes.
• Investigate reasons for absence and determine appropriate actions, including legal options.
• Collaborate with partners to achieve best outcomes for Essex residents while protecting ECC interests.
• Compile accurate data and generate management reports on interventions in a timely manner.
• Support the Senior Attendance Specialist in developing strategies and incentive programmes to raise attendance.
• Work flexibly to accommodate mobility requirements across the operational area.

Skills

Data analysis

Communication

Negotiation

Public sector experience

Education

A level or equivalent

Job description

Please note this is a community based role with office attendance expected 1 day per week or as required by the service. Interviews will be held 16th October 2026. Please note that visa sponsorship is not available for this role. Applicants must have a current, unrestricted right to work in the UK. The role: The Attendance Specialist is responsible for working with schools to improve attendance and encourage early intervention. Offering advice and support in presenting potential solutions to manage intervention effectively and ensure maximum potential opportunities for successful outcomes. In order to understand the underlying issues, investigations will need to be conducted to gain greater insight so that the best way forward for those who have not attended school can be identified. The role requires knowledge and experience of delivering improvement in the level of attendance in schools. As a confident and assertive individual, this role will utilise individual experience to address concerns ensuring plans are developed to deliver improvements, recognising the risks and consequences of not initiating plans before they escalated. This role supports the Senior Attendance Specialist to support individuals and groups of schools to develop strategies, initiatives and incentive programmes to raise attendance and support schools to achieve performance targets. To read more about our business area, please visit: Accountabilities

• Contributes to the development of plans and initiatives to ensure schools are supported in seeking to improve pupil absence levels from school and agree relevant processes as to when escalation is the only option.
• Contributes to exploring options to improve attendance to ensure positive outputs, ensuring best value for money.
• Contributes to improving school attendance across Essex.
• Responsible for positively challenging education establishment's policies and activity to improve attendance.
• Works collaboratively by engaging with appropriate stakeholders to define requirements and achieve quality and value for money services.
• Strategically investigates reasons for school absence and assesses appropriate action including legal action to protect children's education.
• Works collaboratively with partners to ensure the best overall outcome for the people of Essex, whilst protecting ECC's interests.
• Compile accurate written and computerised data of intervention in a timely manner to ensure comprehensive management reports for the service.
• Specific individual and shared targets and objectives are defined annually within the performance management framework. Educated to A level or equivalent by experience.
• Experience of analysing and interpreting data to identify trends and support improvement planning would be advantageous.
• Evidence of continuing professional development and expert knowledge in relevant professional area.
• Practical experience within a school environment or enforcement environment.
• Evidence of resilience and prepared to challenge others to ensure progress.
• Practical experience of delivering public services in a complex, multi-stakeholder environment.
• Evidence of skills and experience in understanding and responding to different audiences and recognising the impact of actions on the rest of the organisation.
• Evidence of great communication and negotiation skills to persuade and influence others to accept recommendations, acting boldly in an agile environment.

Please note that the job role requires you to be mobile throughout an operational area. Therefore, the post holder will need to have a driving licence and access to a vehicle, or the ability to meet the mobility requirements of the role through other means.

As one of the largest and most dynamic UK local authorities, Essex offers a stimulating public service environment. Covering over 1,420 square miles and serving 1.8 million residents, we're committed to transformational change and delivering better quality at lower cost. Recognised in the top three of the latest IMPOWER index for productivity, we ensure everyone matters in . With flexible working options and a focus on innovation, whether you are looking to develop your career or contribute to the local community, Essex is the ideal place for you. In March 2026, the Government announced that councils in Greater Essex will be reorganised into five new unitary authorities from April 2028. In addition to this, Greater Essex has been accepted on to the devolution priority programme, where we will work towards establishing a Mayoral Combined County Authority. You can read more about these changes, and what this may mean for this role, on our .

Essex County Council is proud to be a Disability Confident Leader. We're committed to interview all disabled applicants who choose to apply under our Job Interview Scheme if they meet the minimum requirements of the job. Please speak to our Recruiters if you require any reasonable adjustments during the process. We're also committed to interview all veterans and care leavers, who meet the minimum requirements of the role for which they are applying. Once you've secured your role within Essex County Council you will receive many great employee benefits, including support for unpaid carers and flexible working arrangements to accommodate their needs. At Essex County Council, we value integrity and ethical behaviour. We kindly ask that you embrace our code of conduct and the , including throughout the recruitment process. Your commitment to these standards helps us maintain a positive and respectful workplace for everyone.