Attendance

It is a legal obligation of all parents/carers to ensure their child receives an appropriate education. By law, all children of compulsory school age (5-17) must get a proper full-time education. Parents are responsible for ensuring children attend school regularly in a condition to learn.

The School Day

Children should be in school by 8.30am in Key Stage 2 and 8.45am in Key Stage 1. We register by 8.50am. Arrivals after 8.50 am are classed as late and a missed session is recorded in the register.

Parents should contact the school as soon as possible if a child is going to be absent or late for any reason e.g. doctor, dentist. 

You must report your child’s absence by calling the school office on 01423 863920, before 8.30am on each day of their absence.

Parents may be required to provide medical evidence to substantiate that their child’s illness required them to be absent from school. i.e. some form of medical verification.

Please try to make appointments out of school hours where possible.

Forms for planned absence can be collected from the main office. However, these will be only authorised for 'exceptional circumstances.' Please see policy.

Persistent Absence

Attendance below 90% is considered to be poor and your child will be classified as being persistently absent.

 What does 90% mean?

90% attendance = ½ day missed every week. Over one school year this is a 4 weeks of learning lost.

Attendance below 50% is classed as Severe Persistent Absence.

The school has a duty to follow up on Persistent Absence with parents, to make you aware that your child has fallen into this category. If peristent absence becomes an ongoing problem, the school will have to work with the local authority to meet with parents at an Attendance Panel. This can be followed by a PACE meeting (Police and Criminal Evidence Act) with the Local Authority which can result in prosecution.

Holiday Requests

Parents must complete a Holiday Request form if they intend to take their child out of school for a holiday. Holiday requests are not routinely authorised and the school strong recommends that children are not taken out of school for holidays. Holiday requests are only authorised in truly exceptional circumstances. For example, special birthdays, difficulties with work schedules, catching up with relatives and special events around Christmas etc are not classed as exceptional. Fines for holidays are issued by the Local Authority and the funds generated do not come to the school.

Punctuality

Punctuality matters too. Missed minutes = missed learning = missed opportunities.

Being frequently late for school adds up to lost learning:

-      Arriving 5 minutes late every day adds up to 3 days lost each year

-      Arriving 15 minutes late every day is the same as being absent for 2 weeks a year

-      Arriving 30 minutes late every day is the same as being absent 19 days a year

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Some strategies to improve punctuality:

Bedtime routines – Packing school bag ready for the next day, getting to bed earlier, setting a time for the television, IPad/computer and other devices to be turned off.

Morning Routines – Setting the alarm earlier, no television until ready for school, having breakfast before leaving home.

Coming to Breakfast Club for Breakfast at 8.00am each day (small cost)

 

Key Messages

Your child’s attendance and punctuality is being monitored all the time. Pupils with low attendance and punctuality will be highlighted and given extra support to improve this.

 

At Aspin Park Academy, 97% or above is considered to be good attendance. 

 

Holidays are NOT permitted in the school term and will not be authorised.