Attendance and Punctuality

Excellent attendance at school is vital to securing the greatest possible personal development and academic progress for each child. As we begin the new school year, we expect all families to be committed to excellent attendance. Term-time absences are only authorised in exceptional circumstances, in line with our Attendance Policy (a copy of which can be found on the school website).

Where a child’s attendance looks likely to fall below 90% (the government’s ‘persistent absence’ threshold), parents will be invited into school for a meeting and to agree a ‘Raising Attendance Plan’ for their child. Where attendance falls below 90%, this is equivalent to missing 1 day of school per fortnight across a full school year. This can have a significant detrimental impact on a pupil's academic and personal development.

As a parent, it is your legal responsibility to make sure your child attends school regularly. It is our responsibility to support good attendance and effectively monitor all absence from school. Our attendance target, for all pupils, is at least 97%.

Punctuality is similarly important. School begins at 8:55am for all pupils – please ensure children are consistently punctual. Classroom doors open from 8:45am and learning activities are provided from this time. 

Attendance reports:

Parents will continue to receive our termly attendance reports. These are designed to keep you informed about your child’s attendance and how this compares to the attendance of others in school. 

We understand that there are many legitimate reasons for children to be absent from school – these ‘authorised absences’ are often unavoidable, especially where a child is ill or injured. Our attendance report is not intended to criticise but simply seeks to raise awareness as we work together to ensure your child’s attendance is as high as possible.  

Government data shows that, nationally, pupils with the highest attainment at the end of key stage 2 have higher rates of attendance over the key stage compared to those with the lowest levels of attainment. 

We will always work positively and constructively with families where attendance is low – we know that every family at our school is committed to achieving excellent attendance.

To improve attendance and reduce avoidable absences:

• Avoid scheduling family holidays (or other avoidable trips away) during term time.
• Avoid taking children out of school for a full day when attending appointments – only remove them from school at the time you need to, and bring them back to school afterwards.
• In exceptional circumstances, the school may authorise an absence request during term time. If making such a request, consider steps that can be taken to reduce the impact on your child’s attendance (e.g. keep the number of days away to an absolute minimum).

We greatly value the honesty and openness with which our families approach attendance and absence.

Attendance Policy

To view our attendance policy, please follow the link below.