I've started a petition and campaign with the help of my local MP to try to get the government to change the policy on persistent absence. I have a child with a complex medical condition and disagree with her and other children in a similar position being classed in this way when their medical absences are unavoidable. It makes no sense to include this type of absence in the data for persistent absence as there is nothing either schools or parents can put in place to prevent them. As far as I can see it only skews the data and causes stress and friction between parents and schools. Original Petition thread and further details are here https://www.mumsnet.com/talk/petitionsnoticeboard/5067834-petition-to-stop-sen-pupils-being-classified-as-persistently-absent?utm_campaign=thread&utm_medium=share