Daily attendance register

What you need to know

The plain-English guidance that comes with this document.

• The register is a safety document first, an admin one second. If there's a fire, this is what tells you exactly who should be accounted for. Keep it accurate and up to date through the day — mark children in and out as it happens, not from memory later. The EYFS requires a daily record of children's attendance.
• Ratios are a legal requirement — know yours and stay within them. Staff:child ratios depend on the children's ages and your type of setting, and only suitably qualified staff count toward them. The commonly applied England ratios are broadly: under-2s 1:3, two-year-olds 1:5, and three-and-over 1:8 (or 1:13 where an early years teacher or equivalent is working directly with the children) — but check the exact figures in the current EYFS for your setting, as these are set by the framework. Childminders have their own limits on numbers.
• From 1 September 2026, ratios are assessed across the whole provision — not room by room. The September 2026 EYFS clarifies that you must meet ratios across your whole setting rather than being able to treat each room in isolation. The numbers themselves haven't changed, but how compliance is judged has — so plan staffing (and this register) around the whole cohort present at any moment, and make sure you're never relying on a "spare" adult counted in two places.
• Count qualified staff, not just bodies. Students, unvetted helpers and anyone not counting toward ratio don't make up the numbers. Plan cover for breaks, sickness and the school run so you never dip below ratio.
• Record arrivals, departures and who collected. Times in and out, and who collected each child, close the loop on responsibility — and link to your registration record's authorised-collectors list.
• It's personal data — but keep it accessible in an emergency. Store it securely, but make sure whoever's on shift can grab it instantly for an evacuation.
• Professionally structured starting point — set your ratios from the current EYFS. A manager/childminder tailors the age bands and ratios to the framework and your registration; it's not "compliant out of the box". England-led — Wales/Scotland/NI set their own ratios.