Please download the School Attendance Policy 2024 here
Please download a leave of absence form updated September 2024 here
We recognise that high levels of school attendance are significant to raising standards in education and ensuring all pupils can fulfil their potential. It is an assumption so widely understood but insufficiently stated that children and young people need to attend school regularly to benefit from their education. Missing out on lessons leaves pupils vulnerable to falling behind and achieving less in both primary and secondary school.
- The overall aim of the attendance policy is to:
- Keep children safe and ensure their welfare needs are met in accordance with safeguarding practice.
- Provide a stable environment in which our children can learn.
- Support parents to perform their legal duty by ensuring their children who are of compulsory school age and registered at the academy, attend school regularly.
- Maximise educational opportunities for all our pupils, ensuring there is a consistent and fair approach with equal opportunities for all.
- Encourage good habits of school attendance with a vision on early intervention by supporting families with children in the Early Years Foundation stage.
We do this by:
- Applying a robust attendance process across our schools.
- Notifying parents at the earliest opportunity where attendance is below expected national standards.
- Ensuring pupils are punctual to their lessons and attend school on time.
- Working with parents to reduce illness and medical absence
- Working in collaboration with partner agencies, such as health visitors, school nurses, children’s services and youth services across all levels of the needs assessment.
- Ensuring every pupil has access to full-time education to which they are entitled; which includes individual education plans.
- Identifying vulnerable children who may have a specific area of need to enable them to attend school
- Analysis of attendance data to highlight areas of concern, particularly amongst vulnerable groups, including the identification and tracking of persistent absence pupils
- Working with the families of children in the early years’ foundation stage to ensure there is a readiness to learn.
- Highlighting the importance of attendance with pupils through achievement and rewards.
- The legal powers and duties that govern school attendance and explains how they apply to local authorities, academies, head teachers, school staff, governing bodies, pupils and parents, are contained in:
- The Education Act 1996, sections 434(1)(3)(4) & (6) and 458(4) & (5)
- The Education (Pupil Registration) (England) Regulations 2006
- The Education (Pupil Registration) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2010
- The Education (Pupil Registration) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2011
- The Education (Pupil Registration) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2013
All schools within Redcar and Cleveland are encouraged to adopt a common leave of absence policy to ensure legal compliance;
• Parents should provide at least 4 school weeks advance notice in writing of
any planned absence, the Head Teacher has the discretion to authorise leave
of absence in exceptional circumstances.
• The Local Authority may consider taking further action when unauthorised
leave of absence is taken at the following critical times and circumstances, if
deemed to be in the public interest.
a) At any time in September
b) For any student whose attendance was below 95% within the previous 12
calendar months, measured from the date before the first day of the leave of
absence (including authorised and unauthorised absence).
c) At any time during formal external examination and assessment periods,
including preparation time (school to provide evidence to support).
d) If a holiday warning letter or Penalty Notice has been issued in the previous
12 calendar months, measured from the date before the first day of the leave
of absence regardless of overall attendance during the previous 12 month
period.
e) Warning letters will be issued in those cases where attendance is 95% and
above during the previous 12 months unless taken at a) or c) above.
f) Warning letters will also be issued at the request of head teachers, for those
pupils failing to achieve their academic attainment/potential, patterns of
previous attendance concerns/punctuality, or any other concerns that impact
on their learning.
