Attendance

Absence from School

If for any reason your child is absent from school due to illness or accident, please notify the school by telephone by 9.00am and send a note of explanation with your child on his/her return to school. Without an explanation, there is no alternative but to regard an absence as unauthorised.

If your child has a medical or dental appointment, please inform the teacher well in advance, especially if it is an early morning appointment and you wish to book a midday meal for that day. If the appointment takes place during the day, an adult must collect the child from the school. Children will not be allowed out alone. The person collecting the child must report to the school office.

Absence from school is divided into two kinds: authorised and unauthorised. The government is very concerned about the level of unauthorised absence and each school must now publish statistics showing the level of unauthorised absence.

Full attendance at school is essential to a good education. We cannot, therefore, regard an absence as authorised if it could have been avoided. For example, if your child is ill, absence is generally unavoidable, but absence to look after a younger child or for a family celebration is not acceptable, because alternative arrangements should always be made in such circumstances.

Holidays

As a parent, you will understand that regular attendance at school is essential if your child is to make good progress with his/her education. Therefore we request that family holidays be arranged in the school holiday periods. Requests for leave of absence during term time may only be submitted on the understanding that it is for exceptional circumstances only and should be made by the parent/guardian and forwarded to the Executive Principal at least 14 days before the period of absence. A response will be made by the Executive Principal after consideration. Please note that all unauthorised holidays taken may result in a Penalty Notice being issued by the Local Authority.