Attendance Policy
Attendance Policy
WRAXALL CHURCH OF ENGLAND V.A. PRIMARY SCHOOLATTENDANCE POLICY
Spring 2007 - Review Date Spring 2010
This policy should be taken as part of the overall strategy of the school and operated within the context of our vision, aims and values as a Church of England School.
Rationale
The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, 1991 includes the child's right to education, play, leisure and cultural activity.
Under Section 444 of the 1996 Education Act, a pupil is required to attend regularly at the school where they are a registered pupil.
Attendance at school is an important pre-requisite for a successful and fulfilling school career. Prolonged absence, irregular attendance and a lack of punctuality can all serve to undermine educational achievement and result in long term disadvantage to children and young people.
Schools, parents/carers, local authority, pupils and the community at large need to work collaboratively to maximise attendance.
Aims
(1) To maximise attendance rates in order to ensure that all pupils are able to take the fullest advantage of the learning experiences available to them.
(2) To promote access to education within an ethos which values all learners, promotes equal opportunity and encourages the involvement of pupils and their parents/carers.
Guidelines
a) Rights and Responsibilities
Improving attendance at school is the responsibility of everyone in the school community - pupils, parents/carers and staff.
Pupils
All pupils are expected to attend school regularly and punctually. Pupils who do experience attendance difficulties will be offered prompt and sympathetic support, initially from the headteacher.
Parents
Parents are responsible for ensuring that their child attends school regularly, punctually, properly dressed and equipped and in a fit condition to learn. If a child is prevented for any reason from attending, or is late, parents are requested to notify the school as soon as possible - by phone call or in writing. A pupil's absence from school must be considered as unauthorised until a satisfactory explanation is forthcoming from the parent. Parents will be informed promptly of any concerns, which may arise over a child's attendance.
Parents should avoid, if at all possible, making medical/dental appointments for their child during school hours.
Parents whose first language is not English or who have literacy problems will be offered appropriate support from school in matters of communication.
School
Staff will endeavour to encourage good attendance and punctuality through personal example. Attendance is the responsibility of all school staff. The school will employ a range of strategies (see below) to encourage good attendance and punctuality and will investigate promptly all absenteeism, liaising closely with parents. Staff will respond to all absenteeism firmly and consistently.
b) Registration
Registers will be called promptly at 8.50 am and at 1.15 pm and will be marked in red or black in accordance with the list of symbols as set out in the register.
Registers will close at 9.00 am and at 1.25 pm. If a pupil fails to arrive before the registers close, they will be marked as 'absent'. Pupils who arrive after the registers have closed should report to the school administrator's office who will amend the register entry to read 'absent/late'.) If a pupil is persistently late, the head will contact the parents.
Parents are reminded that if a child arrives in school after the registers have closed and an acceptable explanation is not forthcoming, the pupil has to be recorded as 'unauthorised absent' for that session.
All class teachers will take registers in each of their classes.
The head will inspect all registers each term in order to ensure that correct procedures are being followed, totals are being calculated and entered.
c) Procedure for following up absence
- If a pupil is absent for more than three consecutive days (without an explanation being forthcoming) the head will contact parents. If the absentee is a pupil about whom there are already concerns, the head will make every effort to contact the parents immediately.
- If a pupil is persistently (or intermittently) absent, the head will contact the parents and invite them to attend a meeting at school.
- If a pupil returns to school after a period of absence and fails to bring a note or if the explanation offered by a note is unsatisfactory, the head will contact the parents.
-If a pupil is persistently absent (or late) and the school's efforts to effect an improvement have been unsuccessful, the situation will be referred to the Education Welfare Officer during their consultation visit.
- Notes from parents will be kept in the register until the next visit of the Education Welfare Officer. All telephone messages regarding absence/lateness will be recorded and passed to the teacher concerned.
d) Strategies for promoting attendance
- The school will offer an environment in which pupils feel valued and welcomed. The school's ethos demonstrates that pupils feel that their presence in school is important, that they will be missed when they are absent/late and that follow up action will be taken.
- A varied and flexible curriculum will be offered to all pupils. Every effort will be made to ensure that learning tasks are matched to pupil's need.
- Attendance data will be regularly collected and analysed in order to help identify patterns, set targets, correlate attendance with achievement, and support and inform policy/practice.
- Good attendance awards will be presented at the end of each school term and year.
- Pupils whose attendance is a cause of concern will be set targets for improvement. The head will monitor and review these targets with the pupil and their parent/carers.
- Parents will be reminded regularly (via newsletters, the school prospectus, parent's evenings, Induction and Annual meetings etc.) of the importance of good attendance.
- Pupils who have been absent for whatever reason for an extended period of time will (when appropriate) have individually-tailored reintegration programmes prepared for them.
- The Headteacher will make an annual report to the school?s governing body on attendance matters.
- The Headteacher will, when appropriate and following discussion with the Education Welfare Officer, liaise with other agencies - Educational Psychology Service, Social Services etc - when this may serve to support those pupils who are experiencing attendance difficulties.
- The Headteacher will have regular meetings with the school's Education Welfare Officer in order to identify and support those pupils who are experiencing attendance difficulties.
Holidays in School Term Time
Guidance from the DfES states that parents/carers should not normally take their children on holiday in term time. However, it is for the Headteacher to determine if a holiday request is reasonable. Each request can only be judged on a case by case basis and the expectation is that Headteachers will use their discretion sparingly. In any case, a holiday will usually only be authorised for up to 10 days maximum in any academic year.
Following guidelines from North Somerset Local Authority to create a consistent approach for schools, the following reasons may support an application for holiday in term time:
- Forces Personnel on leave from a foreign posting
- Parents'/Carers' employment restrictions - some employers restrict employees' annual leave, written evidence would normally be required
- Significant family events or circumstances - these would be considered individually
The following would generally not meet the criteria unless there are additional or exceptional circumstances:
- Relatives coming to visit
- Cheaper holidays in England and abroad
- Family day trips
- Visiting family/friends who have different term dates/holidays
Parents/Carers will be required to complete a form to request holiday absence; a clear reason for the request must be indicated. This will need to be done with as much warning as possible and before a holiday is actually booked.
If a holiday is taken without permission from the Headteacher, this will be recorded as unauthorised in the school register and on the school attendance computerised records. The Education Welfare Service may consider issuing a Penalty Notice.
This policy should be read in conjunction with Equal Opportunities, Race Equality and Home Support in Learning policies.
Conclusion
The best performance from the child will be promoted by a welcoming and safe school environment where regular attendance and punctuality is encouraged by staff, parent/carers and pupils working collaboratively. Back to top