Attendance
Absences
Good attendance is essential for all children and absence information is monitored carefully. If your child is ill and will be absent form school, please phone the school office (01670 823 198) by 9:30am on the first day of absence. All absences which are known about in advance should be accompanied by evidence (e.g. an medical appointment card / letter). All unexplained absences or those which are not appropriate will be registered as unauthorised.
Attendance
The school target for attendance is at least 96%. The following table shows the attendance thresholds here at Mowbray Primary:
| Attendance | Description |
|---|---|
|
98.1% to 100%
|
Excellent |
|
96% to 98%
|
Good |
|
93.1% to 95.9%
|
Average |
|
90% to 93%
|
Poor |
|
Below 90%
|
Persistent
|
What if my child's attendance is low or is falling?
Good attendance at school is linked to achievement, progress and attainment academically. If your son / daughter's attendance falls below 95%, and is of concern, you will receive a phone call and a letter notifying you of this from one of the Senior Staff at school. This is to identify the issue early and offer any support which we can in order to help you ensure your child's attendance can improve.
Our attendance is regularly monitored by the Education Welfare Officer. If your child's attendance continues to fall after this initial call, we will contact you again via phone and letter. At this point we will be unable to authorise any further absences. If the absence at this point (or any further absences in the future) are due to an illness / medical issue then we will request evidence of this. At this point, we will ask our Pastoral Officer (Mrs Jane Baines) to contact you to discuss how effective any initial support has been and to explore if we can offer any further support.
If your child's attendance continues to fall or drops below 90% we will discuss the issue with our Education Welfare Officer at their next visit. At this point a referral may be made to the Education Welfare Officer who will then contact you to discuss your child's attendance and will offer further advice and support.
Leave of Absence During Term Time
The 2013 amendments to the 2006 Education (Pupil Registration) (England) Regulations explain clearly that Headteachers may not grant any leave of absence during term time unless there are exceptional circumstances. There is no automatic right to take your child out of school during term time.
The law does however allow Headteachers to consider individual requests to authorise a Leave of Absence in Exceptional Circumstances. It is each parent / carer's responsibility to ensure that all information and evidence to prove the exceptional circumstances are provided at the time of the application. Evidence provided at a later date cannot be considered.
Any request for authorised leave of absence must be made on the school form at least two weeks before the absence. The Headteacher may invite the parent / carer(s) into school to discuss the request before a decision is made.
For the request to be authorised, and in addition to the exceptional circumstances, it is expected that your child's attendance is at least average both prior and after the date covered by the request.
Issues to note:
Should school not agree to grant leave and the parent / carer(s) take their child out of school regardless, then this will be counted as unauthorised absence. Schools are legally required to record absences that accrue as a consequence of leave of absence that has been taken without authorisation. Failure to ensure a child's attendance at school is an offence under Section 444 of the Education Act 1996.
If the Headteacher refuses the leave of absence, and the absence is recorded as unauthorised, the Headteacher may refer the matter to the Local Authority requesting that a penalty notice be issued. A Penalty Notice is £60 is paid within the 21 days of receipt, rising to £120 is paid after 21 days but within 28 days. If the penalty is not paid in full by the end of the 28 day period the Local Authority may prosecute for the offence to which the notice applies. Where there is more than one child, each parent / carer may be issued a Penalty Notice in respect of each child.