Attendance

From the start of the autumn term 2020 pupil attendance is mandatory and the usual rules on attendance will apply, including, a parents’ duty to ensure that their child of compulsory school age attends regularly at the school where the child is a registered pupil.

The exception to this are circumstances where pupils cannot attend school due to coronavirus (COVID-19).

Any absences due to cases of COVID 19 will be recorded as an authorised absence.  If the child is self-isolating then the ‘X’ code will be used for illness; similarly if it is due to a family member self-isolating then the same ‘X’ code will also be used.

It is important that you contact the school office if your child will not be at school between 8.40 and 8:50am. If you fail to notify the school as to why your child is not present the school will initially try to contact you by telephone as a duty of care. If contact cannot be made the school will contact the remainder of the contacts on the sheet you completed at the start of the year. If contact is still not made we may carry out a safe and well check home visit as is part of our school policy. If there is no answer and we are concerned for the safety of a child who we cannot locate we may then inform the Police.

Our school day starts at 8.40am and finishes at 3.15pm. Registration is from 8.40am to 8.50am.  Children should arrive at 8.40am to complete their early morning activities. 

Children who arrive late at school, after the attendance register is closed, are deemed to be absent from school. Therefore, it is important for children not to be late for registration.

Leave of Absence Letter & Request Form

Holidays during term time will be unauthorised unless there are exceptional circumstances as there are 13 weeks each year where children are not at school which could be used for holidays. Children also miss out on their learning in school and building social relationships when they are away. 

As guided by the government and the local authority we have a Leave of Absence Form which must be completed should you wish to take your child out of school during term time.  Please ensure the form is completed and returned to the school office.

Unauthorised Absences

The Local Authority and Government believe that absence during term time should be avoided as it can have a damaging effect on a pupil’s education and overall achievement. We therefore wish to inform you that as of 1st September 2019 we began the process of fining parents/carers for unauthorised absences. We do recognise that there may be exceptional circumstances where authorisation of absence can be justified by the Headteacher.

A “Leave of Absence Request Form” will need to be completed. The Education (Pupil Registration England Amendment) Regulations 2013 explanatory note states: Regulation 7 of the 2006 Regulations is amended to prohibit the proprietor of a maintained school granting leave of absence to a pupil except where an application has been made in advance and the proprietor considers that there are exceptional circumstances relating to the application.

• An application is to be made in advance by the parents/carers with whom the child normally resides on the headed form “Application for Leave of Absence During Term Time”. These forms may be obtained from the school office.
• Leave of absence will only be granted where the Headteacher considers it is due to “exceptional circumstances”. Parents/carers will be informed as to whether the request is “authorised” or “unauthorised”.

The school Attendance Policy includes the following: 

• Leave of absence taken without authorisation may be referred to the Local Authority Attendance Officer.
• A term time leave of 8 consecutive sessions (ie session = am or pm) this is equal to 4 days, or over a 4 week period, not authorised by the school (under exceptional circumstances rule), may result in prosecution proceedings or a Penalty Notice.
• If a Fixed Penalty Notice is issued, a separate Notice would be issued to each parent for each child. From 1st September 2019 the rate per parent per child will be £60 if paid within 21 days and rising to £120 if paid within 28 days.
• If a Penalty Notice is not paid, each parent may be liable to prosecution at the Magistrates Court, and if proved, each Notice may receive a criminal conviction and/or a fine to the maximum of £1,000 plus costs. There are approximately 190 school days within a year which your child is expected to attend. There are 13 weeks of school holidays, and we would appreciate your cooperation in taking your family holidays within this period to prevent fines having to be issued. I

A Leave of Absence Letter & Request Form can be found below, including a copy of the letter which was also issued from Cambridgeshire County Council for your reference: