Late & Absence Procedures
Late/Absence Procedures
For children to progress it is vital that they attend school on time, every day.
Each year there are 188 days for all learners to attend School on time which leaves 177 days for holidays, shopping, birthday treats, non urgent medical and dental appointments and events which should never fall within learning time. The School will not authorise absence for such reasons.
The school's Attendance Target is 96%
Attendance over One School Year
If a learner had:
98% attendance = fewer than 4 days absent from school
95% attendance = fewer than 10 days absent from school
90% attendance = 4 weeks absent from school
85% attendance = 5 ½ weeks absent from school
80% attendance = 7 ½ weeks absent from school (Equivalent to one day per week absence for the whole year).
Attendance throughout Primary School over 6 years (Years 1-6) …
If a learner had:
85-90% attendance = having over 7 months off school!
80% attendance = having almost 45 weeks off school = one whole school year + half a term missed!
Absence Due to Illness
The school appreciates that children are unwell from time to time and that there can be exceptional circumstances for absences but asks that parents think carefully about keeping their child/ren out of school. There is a strong connection between attendance and achievement at school. Absence is proven to have a significantly negative impact upon a child’s educational attainment and future opportunities in life. Parents have legal responsibility to make sure that children are in school, on time every day. We rely on parents’ support to make sure that children get to school safely, regularly and on time. We expect parents to let us know if their child is absent for any reason. Please telephone the school on the first day of absence and write to the teacher on your child’s return. We will decide whether the absence is authorised or unauthorised. The school has a legal duty to publish information on the level of authorised and unauthorised absence and to work alongside Educational Welfare Officers to address absence issues.