Attendance

It is vital that your child attends school as regularly as possible in order to support them in achieving their potential.

There is a very strong link between excellent attendance and high achievement and our attendance target for all students is 95%+.

The academic, social and wellbeing benefits of attending school regularly:

  • Better Learning: Regular attendance helps children keep up with lessons and understand material.
  • Steady Progress: Attending school every day means students don’t fall behind.
  • Higher Grades: Research shows that being in school regularly gives children a greater chance to achieve their potential.
  • Increased Participation: Regular attendance helps children get involved in lessons and extracurricular activities.
  • Extra Support: Children who attend regularly have better access to teachers and extra help when needed.
  • Improved Social Skills: Being in school helps children make friends and learn how to work with others.
  • Sense of Belonging: Attending regularly helps children feel part of the school community.
  • Emotional Stability: Routine helps children feel secure and less anxious; and ensures that they are up to date with their work.
  • Good Habits: Regular attendance builds important life skills like time management and responsibility which are vital for the workplace.

Absence

Frequent absences can add up quickly and be harmful to your child’s progress at school. The following graphic shows how much school you child will miss in a year at the following attendance levels.

If your child is absent, please ensure it is for a genuine illness or emergency only. Please contact us as soon as possible on the first day of absence, and each subsequent day, through Classcharts or by phoning 01443 773128 by 8.35am. Students should return to school as soon as possible after their period of illness/absence.

Please note that even when an absence is reported to the school your child will still be marked as absent, as they are not in school that day, which will affect their overall attendance percentage. The Headteacher will decide whether the absence is marked as an authorised or unauthorised absence and is at their discretion.

If your child is absent due to illness, and their attendance is below 90% for the academic year, the school will request medical evidence for absences. We ask that you provide some form of medical evidence in order for us to authorise the absence.

Please try to make all medical or dental appointments after school or in the school holidays where possible. If an appointment during school time is unavoidable, please send your son/daughter into school before and/or after the appointment. The school requires a copy of the medical appointment card/letter in order to authorise the time away from school.

Punctuality

We expect all students to attend school on time every day. Students are expected to be in school by 8.35am. If for any reason students arrive after 8.35am they will be marked as late (L code) by staff at the gate. Students who arrive after 9.15am should report to reception where staff will mark them as late – this may be considered as an unauthorised absence (code U). This will affect their attendance percentage and will impact on their learning. Students who receive 10 U codes or a mixture of 10 U/O codes during a term may be issued with a Fixed Penalty Notice (FPN). Any student who arrives late once in a week will be issued with a warning and parents/carers will be informed. Students who are late more than once in a week will be issued with a after school detention and Year 10 and 11 students will lose the privilege of being able to go into the community

at lunchtime. Parents/carers of children who are consistently late will be invited into the school so that support can be offered.

In addition, we expect all students to make their way between lessons as quickly as possible. Students who fail to be in their lesson prior to the late bell will be issued with a detention.

Time out of lesson per day in 1 academic year equates to…

As you can see a small number of minutes missed each day can quickly add up!

Family Liaison Officers (FLOs)

A student is deemed to be ‘persistently absent’ if their attendance falls below 90%. The Family Liaison Officer for your child’s year group may contact families and students having issues with their attendance. Their role is to assist students and families in overcoming any barriers that may exist that are stopping your child from attending school regularly.

If a student’s attendance does not improve to the required level after support has been put in place, parents/carers may be fined or prosecuted for irregular attendance. However, our aim is to work with families to stop this from happening.

Holidays in Term Time

Holidays during term time are actively discouraged as it negatively impacts on the student’s ability to engage with the full curriculum. Parents and carers do not have the automatic right to withdraw their children from school for a family holiday and will be reminded of the effect that absence can have on a student’s potential achievement.

The school will consider any application for holidays during term time; parents and carers must apply in advance for permission (four weeks minimum notice for a family holiday). Forms to request a holiday during term time can be obtained from the school reception, Hafan or Hive. The Headteacher will consider the request and will aim to respond in writing within 5 school days to inform the parent or carer whether the request has been authorised. Subsequently, a parent or carer can make an informed decision whether they wish to pursue the absence in the knowledge of any potential consequences.

Parents and carers are advised that a fixed penalty notice may be issued by the local authority when permission for a holiday has not been authorised by the school. The local authority’s Code of Conduct for Issuing Fixed Penalty Notices can be obtained from the school, the local authority’s website or the Attendance and Wellbeing Service.