The Foundation Phase is a Welsh Government flagship policy of early years education (for 3 to 7-year-old children) in Wales. Marking a radical departure from the more formal, competency-based approach associated with the previous Key Stage 1 National Curriculum, it advocates a developmental, experiential, play-based approach to teaching and learning. The Learning Country: a Paving Document (NAfW 2001) notes that following devolution, Wales intended to take its own policy direction in order to 'get the best for Wales'. Getting the best for Wales appeared to involve meeting the challenges of the globalised marketplace (raising levels of basic skills); overcoming social disadvantage; building a strong, enterprising society that embraces multiculturalism; and promoting the language and traditions of Wales. Participation was seen as a key approach. This report arises from the independent evaluation of the Foundation Phase in Wales, commissioned by the Welsh Government and led by the Wales Institute for Social & Economic Research, Data & Methods (WISERD). This is the second in a series of reports that examine outcomes available from analysis of the National Pupil Database (NPD). In particular, it presents findings on rates of absence and teacher assessments for all children in Wales who were aged four to seven between 2004/05 and 2011/12. The inclusion of 2011/12 data corresponds to the completion of the final roll-out of the Foundation Phase; i.e. 2011/12 was the first year during which all Year 2 pupils in Wales were assessed via the Foundation Phase. The availability of this data has enabled the scope of the analysis to be widened in some areas. The main aim of this report is to compare the outcomes for children who followed the Foundation Phase with the outcomes of children who previously followed Key Stage 1 of the National Curriculum. The report presents findings relating to a number of key outcomes including: i. rates and nature of absenteeism; ii. teacher assessments made at Year 2 (i.e. assessments that take place at the end of Key Stage 1 or the Foundation Phase); iii. teacher assessments made at the end of Key Stage 2 (i.e. at Year 6). (author abstract)