No progress was made to reduce absences from Bradford’s schools between the last two academic years, latest figures show.

But the district’s education chiefs say the data give a false impression of improvements that have been made so far this school year.

Figures released today by the Department for Children, Schools and Families show that overall 7.18 per cent of half-days were missed in 2008/09. The same figure was recorded the year before.

Nationally, overall absence dropped from 6.29 per cent to 6.27 per cent of half-days in the same period.

But the percentage of pupils who were persistently absent has fallen year-on-year from 4.8 per cent to 3.9 per cent in Bradford. Nationally the statistic fell from 3.6 per cent to 3.3 per cent.

Unauthorised absence did rise in the district, from 1.81 per cent of half-days missed to 1.92 per cent. The trend replicates the national picture where there was an increase of 0.4 per cent to 1.5 per cent.

Education Bradford, the private firm which provides school support services to the district’s schools, said the data showed Bradford was the jointly most- improved for reducing persistent absence at primary schools and fourth most-improved in Yorkshire for cutting persistent absence in secondary schools.

Managing director Denise Faulcon-bridge said: “The figures published by the DCSF provide a picture which is now out of date. What we are seeing is that overall attendance in Bradford primary and secondary schools has risen since these figures were collated.

“This means that in this academic year, between September 2009 and now, there has been a 1.7 per cent rise in secondary school attendance and a 1.4 per cent increase in primary school attendance.

“Education Bradford and schools have been focusing on persistent absence in schools for the last five years and there has been a 3.5 per cent improvement at secondary level since persistent absence was first closely monitored in 2005.

“The DCSF figures show that between 2007/2008 and 2008/2009 there has been a 20 per cent decrease in the number of persistent absence secondary school students and a ten per cent reduction at primary level.”

e-mail: ben.barnett@telegraphandargus.co.uk