Attendance
Reporting Absence
Please report reasons for absence as soon as possible every day that your child is not in school.
If the school has no reason for absence by 9:15 am, we will send a text message and call home.
School must know where children are, what they are doing and who they are with.
What happens if my child is ill?
If your child is ill at school
We take the health and welfare of our pupils very seriously. We will inform parents if a child has been injured or upset, or feels ill either through face to face discussion with parents, a phone call home, or a bump note and sticker. If it is deemed that your child is not well enough to be in school then we will phone their emergency contact for them to be collected. It is essential, therefore, that we have an up-to-date telephone number, and emergency contact number, so that we can make contact with parents/carers when necessary. We welcome parents to school to discuss any concerns they may have about their child’s welfare, progress or happiness.
Absence owing to illness
Please inform the school of your child’s illness on the first day of absence. This can be done through a phone call (01709 740266). If we do not hear from you on the first day that your child is absent then, once registers close, a text reminder will be sent for you to contact us. This is to ensure the safety of all pupils and to establish whether you are aware that your child is not at school, or if they are truanting. Should the absence last for more than a day, we ask that you keep the school informed about when your child is likely to return to school.
Should we have concerns about a child’s attendance level then parents will be invited in to discuss any difficulties they may be having in getting their child to school and any support that the school can offer.
Appointments
Where possible, it would be preferable for appointments to be made outside of school hours. We are aware, however, that this is not always possible. In these instances we would encourage parents to ensure that their child misses the minimum amount of learning time in order to attend. Children should attend school before appointments when it is possible and return to school as soon as they can afterwards.
Arbor Attendance
The Arbor attendance system is operating in school, identifying issues early and all staff receive their class’s weekly attendance analysis in order to inform the teacher as to what action may need to be taken in regard to conversations with parents. First day calling takes place daily.
Are you aware?
Just seven and a half days off school in a year would lead to your child being below the national average.
If your child’s attendance drops below 90% they would be categorised as Persistent Absence (PA) and would be at risk of underachieving.
What are we doing to help?
We know attendance is important and we also know that every family and their situation is different. We are always available to speak about how we can support children and families to improve attendance. We want to support you in supporting your child in attending school regularly.
If your child’s attendance drops to a concerning level (below 95%) school will contact you to discuss any support you may need to improve. We always look to support families and remove any barriers to good attendance.
If your child becomes unwell in school, we are able to offer Calpol with permission from parents. We will always contact home before administering any Calpol.