Attendance
Timings and Punctuality
Doors open at 8:40am and close at 8:50am, when the registers are taken. Children arriving after 8:50am must enter school through reception at the front of the building to be signed in as late at the school office. The reason for being late should be provided.
Receiving a late mark affects a child’s overall attendance, and children who arrive late after the register has closed will receive an ‘unauthorised absence’ for the session.
Impact of Poor Attendance and Punctuality
While it may seem insignificant if a child often misses days in school or is regularly late, it can quickly add up meaning they miss out on learning, which can then be difficult to catch up on. Being late can also cause anxiety as they enter the classroom feeling unprepared and possibly embarrassed. For example, 90% attendance might sound reasonable but in fact this equates to 20 school days off each year - the children learn and experience a huge amount in 20 days! The table below shows what different attendance percentages work out to be in terms of actual school days missed.
How can parents/carers support good school attendance?
By working in partnership between home and school, we can ensure each child has a good school attendance, enabling them to fully access the education they are entitled to and helping them to best learn, grow and flourish with their friends.
Parents/carers should:
- Ensure your child arrives on time - if it would be helpful, consider using our Breakfast Club.
- Establish and maintain good routines in the mornings and evenings so your child is ready and prepared for school each day.
- Arrange all non-emergency medical and dental appointments outside of school hours wherever possible.
- Take all family holidays outside of term time. A holiday does not count as exceptional circumstances and so any requests for pupil leave of absence for a holiday will be unauthorised.
- Attend parent/carer consultations to show children how much we all value their education and wellbeing.
- Always inform the school office before 9.00am on the first day of absence and every day thereafter if your child is absent due to illness.
- Praise and celebrate all of your child's wonderful achievements at school.
To find out more about our attendance procedures, please see the Attendance Policy and if you are having difficulty in getting your child into school or being on time, please speak to us - we are here to help.