Mile Cross Primary School is committed to providing a full and efficient education to all pupils and embraces the concept of equal opportunities for all. School attendance is subject to various Education Laws and this school attendance policy is written to reflect these laws and the guidance produced by the DFE.

Aims

The aims of the school attendance policy are;
  • To endeavour to provide an environment where all pupils feel valued and welcomed.
  • To encourage regular school attendance, this is vital if pupils are to gain maximum benefit from the full range of opportunities offered by the school. We will consistently work towards a goal of 100% attendance for all children.
  • To foster and develop partnership with parents/carers over attendance and to expect them to enable their children to attend school regularly, punctually and not to truant.
  • To involve Governors in the encouragement of all aspects of good practice and in monitoring the success of the policy.
  • To liaise with outside agencies in order to maximise attendance rates.
  • To establish whether there are generalised reasons, e.g. suitability of work, bullying etc which hinder attendance and adapt our policy accordingly.

Policy

To deliver the aims of the policy we will;
  • Insist that registers are taken at the beginning of the school day and after lunchtime.
  • Establish clear procedures for the marking of registers.
  • All registers will be taken online using Pupil Asset.
  • Make it clear to parents/carers that prompt explanation for absence is expected and to establish procedures to enable this to happen.
  • Stress the importance of punctuality at every opportunity and develop ways of dealing with lateness.
  • Identify the main headings of absence and decide which will be authorised and which is unauthorised.
  • Monitor attendance figures regularly.
  • Use school newsletters to remind parents/carers about the importance of good attendance.
  • Continue to develop strategies for encouraging and rewarding good attendance through individual and class rewards.
  • Report issues related to attendance to Governors regularly.
  • Include attendance statistics on pupil reports.

Procedures

  • Registers will be closed at 9.10 and 13.30. An acknowledgment of presence of each pupil on the register must be made at registration – 8.45. An acknowledgement of pupil arrivals after completion of the register in the classroom will be made by the school office staff. The importance of correct completion of this official document can not be over stressed.
  • The secretary will monitor register completion.
  • The head teacher will review annually the procedures for register completion and inform staff of any changes to procedures.
  • The secretary will be responsible for following up ‘first day absence’ for those pupils without explanation on the first day of absence. Parents are expected to phone school and leave a message giving an explanation of their child’s absence as soon as possible on the first day of absence. If parents prefer they can give the information in person at the school office. The Deputy/Assistant Head Teacher and the secretary will meet regularly to review procedures and individual cases of concern. If a child’s attendance is below 85% a referral will be made to the Attendance Improvement Officer for a fast track procedure to take place.
  • Any pupil who is absent without an explanation for 10 consecutive days will be notified to Norfolk LEA.
  • The secretary and Deputy Head/Assistant Head is responsible for following up cases of poor pupil punctuality. An absence/late book will be maintained by the office staff. The Deputy Head Teacher will contact, by letter, the parents/carers of pupils who persistently arrive late at school. Fixed penalty notices will be enforced.
  • Due to new Government legislation that came into force in September 2013 the Head teacher can not authorise a request for holiday during term time unless in very exceptional circumstances. If parents take a holiday it is recorded as unauthorised and referred to the Attendance Improvement Officer
  • Attendance is monitored and at the end of each term the top three classes in the League are rewarded with a treat that could include a trip. This will also include those children with 100% attendance from other classes
  • A summary of each pupil’s attendance for the year will be sent to parents termly.
  • The head teacher and secretary will compile attendance statistics for the DFE return and will set new attendance targets for the next academic year.
  • Within school it is the duty of the class teacher to be aware of and bring attention to any emerging attendance concerns. In cases where a pupil begins to develop a pattern of absences the school will contact the parent/carer and try to resolve the problem as soon as possible.
Our schools target for 2015-2016 is 98% Our school Persistent Absence target is less than 1% Staff are to check pupil addresses and telephone numbers, on a regular basis and update with the school office when changes occur.

Categories of Absence

  1. Unauthorised absence – This is for those pupils where no reason has been provided, or whose absence is deemed to be without valid reason.
  2. Authorised Absence – This is for those pupils who are away from school for a reason that is deemed to be valid under the Education Act 1996.
  3. Approved Educational Activity – This covers types of supervised activity undertaken off site but with the approval of the school. Pupils recorded in this category are deemed to be present for attendance returns purposes.