Attendance

As you are now aware the school day comprises of 3 x 100 minute lessons Monday- Friday with a tutor period on Wednesday (week A only). During these lessons, a significant amount of content is covered in great depth. Each lesson builds sequentially to ensure pupils have the necessary knowledge and understanding to make progress. Therefore, a child’s attendance plays a crucial role in their ability to engage with their curriculum and ultimately influence their outcomes. We have set the target attendance for each child at 97% by the end of the academic year because we believe this is the standard that a child should meet to give them the very best chance of success.

TARGET 97%

Working together to improve our attendance
CAN WE DO IT?
There are currently 190 school days in a year and we want to see every child at school every day because

EVERY SCHOOL DAY COUNTS!

As you are aware, one of our priorities is to improve our school attendance. Our Heads of Year along with The Local Authority are keeping a close eye on our school percentage rates of attendance and the pupils who are persistantly absent (below 92%) from school and/or those families who regularly take ‘term time’ holidays.
Where there are gaps in learning, outcomes are harder to achieve.

Overall Attendance	Days absent	Learning missed (minutes)	Descriptions
100%	0	0	Outstanding attendance.
98%	4	1200	Good attendance, above target.
97%	6	1800	Good attendance, on target.
95%	10	3000	Below target.
92%	15	4500	Below target and cause for concern. You are missing too much school.
90%	19	5700	Serious cause for concern, you are a persistently absent student. You are missing too much school.
Below 90%	More than 19 days	>5700	Your attendance places you as one of the lowest attenders in the school. Your attendance must improve by the end of the year.

We fully understand that parents, guardians and carers face very challenging decisions when their child is ill. I have put together some frequently asked questions and answers to hopefully aid your decision when deciding if your child should attend school.

 

 

Why is attendance so important?

Good school attendance gives students a high chance of success. By attending each day, students ensure that they learn all content required, form good habits and most importantly are safe. Attending each day will not guarantee success but students displaying a good attitude to learning along with good attendance have a better chance of reaching their full potential.

 

My child has a mild cold? What do I do?

Colds and similar viruses will still occur, you can still send your child into school.

 

My child has a minor injury? What do I do? 

Notify the school, we will plan to support your child through the school day.

 

My child has contacted me using their mobile phone telling me they are unwell, what do I do?

Please contact the main reception, we will check on your child and contact you. Please do not organise to pick up your child without notifying us.

 

My child is feeling better this afternoon. What should I do?

Send your child in, every minute counts.

 

My child is refusing to come into school I know/ don’t know the reason.

Contact reception and ask to speak to your child’s Head of Year or contact them directly using their work mobile number. In this situation we will want to support your child quickly and provide the necessary advice.

 

We hope you find this information helpful. With the disruption we have all faced during recent challenging times, it is understandable for some pupils to have not settled into good attendance routines yet. By working together early this academic year, We are confident we will support your child to have good attendance and therefore have a successful year. As always, we thank you for your incredible support and the superb work you do in supporting us.

REPORT YOUR CHILD’S ABSENCE

If a student is absent from school please contact the relevant Head of Year on one of the following numbers either by text or voicemail. If you wish to speak to one of our Heads of Year for anything other than attendance please contact the main school office on 0116 264 1080

KS3

KS4