One in ten pupils was off school on Tuesday as the rates for strep A and winter respiratory viruses stepped up, new figures suggest.
Data from more than 4,000 schools also show absences at the start of December were higher than at the same time last year when Omicron was circulating in the UK.
On Wednesday, the Department for Education issued an update to schools, saying it was “closely monitoring” cases of Strep A and scarlet fever.
Thirteen school-age children have died in England since September after developing invasive Strep A, known as iGAS.
There have been 652 recorded cases of iGAS since September, compared with an average of 311 in the same timeframe over the past five years.
Attendance data was shared with Schools Week by the school management information system operator Arbor Education.
It shows that between November 30 and December 6, attendance fell from 90.9 per cent to 89.1 per cent – the lowest since September.
