Attendance and Punctuality
Research shows that pupils with higher levels of school attendance are more likely to benefit from education, achieve better results both at primary and secondary school levels and go on to have more successful careers.
Similarly, irregular or poor attendance at school can lead to pupils underachieving and underperforming at school.
It is our legal responsibility to promote excellent attendance for all children. We therefore monitor attendance carefully and look for patterns of regular or persistent non-attendance at school. If a child’s attendance is a concern we will contact parents so that we can work together to ensure that every child has the education that they deserve.
Arriving late
Starting school on time is extremely important and it can be very upsetting for a child to arrive late for school.
Any child or family arriving after 9.00am will need to report to the school office where the Admin Assistant will record the reason for lateness. If a child is late three or more times, an appointment will be made for the parent to see the Executive Headteacher so that we can work together to resolve the issue.
Attendance
Each term the school will send home a copy of each child’s attendance record.
This will tell parents how many times their child has been late or absent, and whether these absences have been authorised. It is important to remember that if no reason for an absence is given it will be recorded as unauthorised. If a child’s attendance falls below 90% or is regularly late, parents will be contacted by the school to make an appointment to talk about how we can work together to improve attendance. We may also advise working with external agencies to support parents in improving attendance. If poor attendance persists then legal action will be taken by Hampshire County Council.
Health and dental appointments
Parents are required to arrange appointments for health and dental needs outside of school hours.
If a child does need to be withdrawn from school for an appointment this needs to be communicated to the school in advance and we are required to have sight of the appointment letter or card as confirmation of the absence requested.
Holidays or time off in term time
All parents or carers have a legal duty to ensure that their child attends school during term time.
Failure to do so can lead to prosecution. The school abides by legal and government guidelines and will therefore not authorise any absence from school unless there are exceptional circumstances.
These are classified as:
- A leave of absence due to terminal illness in/or death of an immediate family member.
- A leave of absence for families of armed service personnel if they are returning from long operational tours that prevent contact during scheduled holiday time.
If a parent or carer needs to request a leave of absence due to one of these reasons they are required to complete a Request for Absence Form.
IMPORTANT
If a child has a low attendance rate [below 90%] then the school is advised to refuse any request for leave for absence, whatever the reason.
Please remember that any requests for holidays in term time will be refused, irrespective of a child’s attendance rate. If a parent or carer proceeds to take the holiday this will be recorded as an unauthorised absence and will lead to a Penalty Notice if the trigger point of 10 unauthorised sessions is reached. Please be advised that Penalty Notices are issued to both parents irrespective of whether parents are separated or not and fines are issued to both parents for each child not at school.
Remember; don’t let your child miss out!