St. Paul’s Church of England Primary School

Attendance Policy

St. Paul’s Church of England Primary School seeks to ensure that all its pupils receive a full-time education which maximises opportunities for each pupil to realise his/her true potential. The school will strive to provide a welcoming, caring environment, whereby each member of the school community feels wanted and secure.
All school staff will work with pupils and their families to ensure each pupil attends school regularly and punctually.
The school will establish an effective system of incentives and rewards which acknowledges the efforts of pupils to improve their attendance and timekeeping and will challenge the behaviour of those pupils and parents/carers who give low priority to attendance and punctuality.
To meet these objectives St. Paul’s Church of England Primary School will establish an effective and efficient system of communication with pupils, parents/carers and appropriate agencies to provide mutual information, advice and support.

Section One

Aims
To improve the overall percentage attendance of pupils at school
Apply whole school attendance policy consistently.
Establish and maintain a high profile for attendance and punctuality.
Relate attendance issues directly to the school’s values, ethos and curriculum.
Monitor progress in attendance measurable outcomes.
To make attendance and punctuality a priority for all those associated with the school including pupils, parents/carers, teachers and governors
Use staff/school handbook and prospectus
Produce annual reports to parents/governors.
Hold induction Reception Year evening for parents/pupils.
Produce newsletters
Provide INSET training for appointed/promoted staff.
Display materials at focal points – corridors and classrooms etc.
Discuss attendance issues in evaluation meetings and/or in relevant staff meetings (e.g. attendance review meetings)
Introduce award systems, including stickers, certificates, rewards etc.
Promote attendance through Home School Liaison Officer
To develop a framework which defines agreed roles and responsibilities and promotes consistency in carrying out designated tasks
Maintain unambiguous procedures for statutory registration.
Home School Liaison Officer to make phone/letter contact, on first day of absence.
Ensure clearly defined late registration procedures.
Respond swiftly to lateness (in respect of both pupils and parents/carers)
Define clearly the roles and responsibilities within the school staffing structure.
Timetable Home School Liaison Officer to meet with Education Welfare Officer

Have clear procedures prior to referral to Education Welfare Officer
Review attendance regularly – Headteacher to oversee this weekly, half termly and termly
Be familiar with the Education Welfare Officer’s referral and recording system.
To provide support, advice and guidance to parents/carers and pupils
Highlight attendance in:
• PSHE
• Assemblies
• Class
• Learning Mentor intervention
• Making use of available resources
Identify and refer to public support offered by schools.
Set aside time for parents/carers to speak to staff.

Maintain good communication with parents e.g. when parents ring in.
Maintain accurate and up-to-date contact information for parents/carers.
Involve parents/carers from earliest stage.
To develop a systematic approach in gathering and analysing attendance related data
Consider the advantages of computerised registration.
Standardise recording of:
• authorised/unauthorised absence (and to have decided after two weeks)
• educational activity
• presence
Be consistent in the collection and provision of information.
Decide what information, if any, is provided for:
• governors
• pastoral staff
• other school staff
• parents/carers
• pupils (individual or groups)
• education welfare
Identify developing patterns of irregular attendance and lateness.

Identify patterns of attendance and punctuality within groups re; gender, ethnicity, EAL, SEN etc.

To further develop positive and consistent communication between home and school
Initiate first day absence contact.
Make full use of computer generated letters
Promote expectation of absence letters/phone calls from parents/carers.
Explore the wide range of opportunities for parental partnerships
Provide information in a user-friendly way
Encourage all parents/carers into school.
To promote effective partnerships with the education welfare service and with other agencies
HSLO to liaise with education welfare service.
Give priority to timetabled meetings with Education Welfare Officer
Carry out initial enquiries/intervention prior to referral.
Gather and record relevant information to assist completion of Education Welfare records
Hold regular attendance review with key school staff and Education Welfare Service.
Arrange multi-agency liaison meetings as appropriate.
Establish and maintain list of named contacts within the local community eg community police contact officer.
Encourage active involvement of other services and agencies in the life of the school.
Develop understanding of agency constraints and operating environments.
To recognise the needs of the individual pupil when planning reintegration following significant periods of absence
Be sensitive to the individual needs and circumstances of returning pupils.
Involve/inform all staff in reintegration process.
Provide opportunities for counselling and feedback.

Consider peer support and mentoring.
Involve parents/carers as far as possible.
Agree timescale for review of reintegration plan.
Include outside agencies where necessary, parents/carers and pupil in reintegration plan.

Section 2

School Policy

Reporting Absence

It is parent’s responsibility to inform the school of the reason for a child’s absence and there is an expectation that parental contact on the first day of absence will occur. Notification of absence should be by parental note, telephone call or personal contact and all letters should be addressed to the headteacher. Sometimes children have worries or are upset and do not want to come to school. Parents/carers need to inform the school by making an appointment to see the teacher.

At the Nursery induction meeting for parents/carers of children about to enter the nursery, the importance of regular attendance is discussed and explained. This talk also includes parents/carers and children arriving at school on time so that each child can be given the best possible start to each school day. Not being picked up on time is also stressful, especially for young children who can be very upset if they are the only ones left.

Lateness

A pupil arriving late may seriously disrupt not only his/her continuity of learning but also that of others. Where pupils miss registration altogether and fail to provide adequate explanation they will be marked as unauthorised absent. Emerging patterns of lateness may provide grounds for prosecution.

Those children who arrive after 8.50 am must report to the Home School Liaison Officer where their name will be recorded into the latebook. This information will later be transferred to registers.

Truancy

In the rare case of suspected truancy, the headteacher would be notified who would contact the parents/carers. The Education Welfare Officer is also notified. Hopefully discussion with parents/carers and the child would resolve this issue. Repeated truancy is a matter to be dealt with by the Education Welfare Officer and ultimately with Social Services.

Concerns

If a child has been regularly late for school or is often absent, then a letter of explanation should be sent into the office. If absence persists without explanation the HSLO will contact parents. Usually the Home School Liaison Officer will notice this when checking registers but as a back up all adults involved with a child in school have the responsibility of bringing persistent absence or patterns of absence to her attention.

The Home School Liaison Officer meets regularly with the Education Welfare Officer to discuss attendance and punctuality issues and to decide on actions where necessary.

Educational Welfare Service

Local Authorities are charged in law with enforcing school attendance. Where the irregular attendance of a pupil causes concern the Local Authority can prosecute parents/carers. The headteacher has a duty to inform the Education Welfare Service of any irregular attendance or lateness and will report regularly to the Governing Body on figures and patterns.

Parental Notes

Parentally condoned unjustifiable absence is equally as damaging as truancy. Only the school can approve absence, not parents/carers. The fact that a parent/carer may offer a note or other notification in relation to a particular absence does not, of itself, oblige the school to accept it as a valid reason for absence. If in the opinion of the school the explanation offered is unacceptable (or where there is no explanation given) the absence must be treated as unauthorised. Excessive amounts of absence can seriously disrupt continuity of learning and encourage disaffection. Absence of pupils without valid reason or for which no explanation has been provided must be treated as unauthorised.

Pupils who are frequently absent as a result of illness will be referred to the School Nurse and or the Education Welfare Officer.

Family Holidays and Trips Overseas During Term Time

Government legislation does not allow parents to take children out of school during term time. The reason for this is that children miss a large amount of work during this time and will not have the opportunity in school to catch up.

Special permission for absence during term time must be requested in writing on a school form. The headteacher will decide whether to authorise the absence. The nature, purpose and duration of the trip and the circumstances of the parents will be considered along with the overall attendance pattern of the child when deciding on authorisation. It is extremely rare for leave to be authorised and most of such absences are referred to the Education Welfare Officer.

Parents who keep children away from school longer than the authorized period must be prepared for the possibility of losing their school place. The headteacher will consider the use of penalty notices, in line with Southwark Local Authority policy and procedures, in the event of avoidable persistent absence, or holidays taken in term time.

Maggie Brady

Reviewed – September 2015

Next review – September 2016