ATTENDANCE IS IMPORTANT:

Should my child attend School today? 

The NHS link below offers some excellent advice and information, for parents and carers to help them decide whether a child needs time off school and when it is safe to allow them to attend. It also has some robust advice on how to manage an unwell child if there is any uncertainty for parents or carers. Attendance is important.  

www.portsmouth.gov.uk/attendance 

https://www.what0-18.nhs.uk/parentscarers/worried-your-child-unwell/child-unwell-ok-go-nurseryschool 

Attendance

Good and regular school attendance has a significant impact on children’s wellbeing as well as their social and academic achievement.

Promoting good attendance

We aim to work in partnership with you in order to ensure your child attends school on a regular basis and receives the maximum benefit from the education we provide.

Authorised absence 

Absence will only be authorised in very exceptional circumstances and this is at the discretion of the headteacher.  The school will authorise absence for illness or medical appointments.  Please note that absence can only be approved in advance and not retrospectively.

Unauthorised absence 

Absence will be unauthorised if we do not receive any communication from parents. Absence for holidays cannot be approved.

Schools can, in liaison with the Local Authority, issue fixed penalty fines when an unauthorised absence results in a period of at least 10 unauthorised sessions in any one term, i.e. 5 days. The fixed penalty is £60 per child per responsible adult to be paid within 21 days.  If this is not paid then the penalty increases to £120 to be paid within 28 days.  If the fine is still not paid within this time then parents will be taken to court and can be fined up to £1000.

Notifying the school about absence

If your child is absent from school for any reason please notify the school as soon as possible and leave a message on the absence line.  On the first day of absence, if no message has been received, we will telephone to check the absence. We do this to ensure the safety of the pupil. You must telephone each morning that your child is absent to update the school office. Please confirm the reason for the absence in writing upon the child’s return.

Late arrival

Any child arriving in school after the bell has gone at 8.50am is officially late and must come in with an adult through the main school office reception where their name and the reason for the late arrival will be entered in the late book. Children arriving in school after 9:20 a.m. will be registered as an unauthorised absence, as will all late arrivals other than those for which we have received prior notification e.g. medical treatment of some kind. Unauthorised absence is closely monitored all year by the school and Local Authority. We will endeavour to meet with parents to help address any issues that are causing difficulty in achieving punctuality and good attendance. 

Attendance Concerns

Attendance is carefully monitored.  If the school is concerned about lateness or poor attendance you will be contacted.