The study investigated the association between two dependent variables, and 58 other variables, in 33 Sheffield secondary schools. The dependent variables were persistent absenteeism and exclusion for disciplinary reasons. Of the other variables, 22 described the schools' catchment area, with the remainder describing structural and organisational aspects of the schools themselves. There was no significant relationship between the two dependent variables. Results suggested that poor school attendance is strongly associated with socio‐economic disadvantage, but not to the same extent with structural or organisational aspects of the school. In contrast no model was found which could satisfactorily account for exclusion rates. This was taken as evidence that policy on exclusion is largely idiosyncratic to each schoo