ATTENDANCE
We encourage good attendance. For example, the attendance trophy is awarded to the class with the highest attendance each week – many children become proud of their excellent attendance record.
However, children who are too ill to come to school or may pass infection to others should not attend. When children are absent from school we ask parents to inform the school office by 9.00am on the first day of absence and to provide a note of explanation on the child’s return to school. We contact parents if we feel their children is to ill to stay at school.
Leave of absence will be given for attendance at medical or dental appointments or for examinations in music, dance etc. However, where possible such appointments should be made outside of school hours.
This is the advice from the Department for Children, Schools and Families.
“It is wholly appropriate for parents to keep children away from school when they are not well enough to attend lessons. But it is equally inappropriate for parents to keep children away from school for trivial ailments, particularly ailments which would not keep parents away from work.
Where schools have concerns…, they can and should challenge the parents’ explanation and seek evidence of the illness.”
Term-time holidays
All requests for holidays / extended leave will be considered on an individual basis. The following points should be noted:
- There must be exceptional circumstances for the holiday.
- Pupils must have at least 92% attendance for the current year before authorisation would even be considered.
- No leave for holidays will be authorised for children in Year 6 as they will be undertaking Statutory Assessment Tests (SATS).
If a child does not return to school within ten days of the agreed return date, the Attendance Consultants will be informed and the child may be taken off roll.
Requests for days off for religious observance will be considered as appropriate.
This follows the advice of The Department for Children, Schools and Families. They strongly discourage term-time holidays:
“Schools must remember that they can only approve absence for family holidays if they consider that there are special reasons which warrant the holiday.
Holiday prices and the fact that parents have booked a holiday before checking with the school are not special reasons. Absence for a family holiday can result in pupils with poor attendance becoming persistent absentees.”
(Further information on advice regarding attendance is available on the DCSF Website. A copy of the Education (Pupil Registration) (England) Regulations 2006 is available on the UK Statute Law Database.
