Absence/Attendance

Regular and consistent attendance at school is essential.  Absence and lateness inevitably cause distress to the child and inconvenience to the staff.             

Parents do not have the right to take their children out of school during term-time.  By law you must request permission from the headteacher for your child to miss school for any reason. 

The form below must be completed for any form of absence (with the exception of medical and dental appointments) and it should be submitted for authorisation at least 10 days before the proposed absence. 

Unauthorised Absence

The following requests for absence will not be authorised:

• Holiday requests during term-time will not be authorised, unless there are exceptional circumstances.

• Absence requests for a child's birthday, 'family reasons', to 'beat the rush hour', 'parents' work commitments' will not be authorised;

• Any absence at the start of the school term and particularly in September, where the start of the year is so formative, will not be authorised;

• Permission will not be granted for any absence during formal assessment periods or in the run up to Statutory Assessments.

Penalty Notices for holiday taken during term-time.  After consultation with governors and the Education Welfare Service, we will from 1 January 2023 be requesting that the LA issue a penalty notice for any holiday absence of 5 x days or more.  The penalty notice is a fine of £60 per child, per parent if paid within 21 days, rising to £120 per child, per parent if paid within 28 days.  Failure to pay the Penalty Notice could result in the Local Authority starting legal proceedings.

Authorised Absence

Absence will continue to be authorised for the following reasons:

• Medical and dental appointments, although non-urgent appointments should be scheduled outside school hours where possible
• Illness
• Exams – Dance, Music etc…
• Bereavement
• Religious Observance

The above statements are not exhaustive and it is recognised that there will be times when compelling and exceptional reasons will mean absence from school.

We aim for all children’s attendance to be 95% and above.  When it falls below 90% we have a legal duty to inform the Local Authority which then triggers an investigation by the Education Welfare Service.  When a child’s attendance falls below 90% there is a serious risk of underachievement.