Attendance and Absence Form

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.

Our Attendance Policy can be found in the School Policies section on this website.

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.

Absence Reporting

We would like to remind you of the crucial necessity to notify the school promptly if your child is unwell or unable to attend. Kindly contact the school by phone or email, preferably before the school day commences at 8:50 am. Should we not receive communication from you, we will initiate contact first via phone and then through email to ascertain the reason for the absence.

In adherence to our safeguarding protocol, and in light of the recent tragic news story, if there is no communication from parents, we will undertake further inquiries and escalate the matter to ensure the safety of your child. For parents of children in Years 5 and 6 who walk to school independently, it is particularly vital to inform the school office before the start of the school day if your child will not be attending.

Your cooperation in promptly notifying us plays a significant role in maintaining a safe environment for everyone. Thank you for your ongoing support.

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 Local Authority 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. The penalty notice is issued by the Local Authority and the money from the penalty notice goes to the Local Authority not to Collis School. 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.

Is my child too ill for school?

It can be tricky deciding whether or not to keep your child off school, nursery or playgroup when they're unwell.

There are government guidelines for schools and nurseries about managing specific infectious diseases at GOV.UK. These say when children should be kept off school and when they shouldn't. Please click here to view the government guidelines.

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.