Attendance, Late Collection and Absences

School Attendance

The staff at Arden Primary School are committed, in partnership with the parents/carers, children, governors and the Local Authority, to building a school which serves the community and of which the community is proud. Arden Primary School firmly believes that all children benefit from regular school attendance. Full and regular attendance at school is crucial for a child’s future life chances and establishes a positive work ethic early in life. To this end, we will do all we can to encourage parents/carers to ensure their children achieve maximum possible attendance and that any problems that prevent full attendance are identified and acted on promptly. Pupils will be expected to achieve 100% attendance, but when absence is unavoidable, parents/carers will be required to inform the school at the earliest opportunity.

Arden Primary School believes that in order to facilitate teaching and learning, good attendance is essential. Pupils cannot achieve their full potential if they do not regularly attend school.

Every day counts 

Pupils cannot achieve their full potential if they do not regularly attend school. We want every child to achieve their full potential and we know that parents share this goal. There is a clear link between good attendance and educational achievement. If your child is not in school, on time, as often as possible they will be missing out on many important parts of their education.

Why is regular attendance at school important?

Regular school attendance will mean that your child has a better chance in life. Your child will achieve better when they go to school all day, every school day as:

• they learn better
• they make friends
• they are happier
• they have a brighter future.

The Government regard 95% as the minimum satisfactory attendance for a school pupil.

Days off school add up to lost learning. Please don’t let your children miss out on the education they deserve.

How does your child compare?

We monitor attendance closely and contact parents to inform them and offer support where attendance has dropped and causes concern.

Good attendance is promoted in school through assemblies and rewards. We are always happy to work with families to support and improve attendance.

Family emergencies need careful consideration. It is not always in the best interests of the pupil to miss school for family emergencies that are being dealt with by adult family members. School and school friendships and relationships can provide pupils with stability and care during difficult times. The routine of school can provide a safe and familiar background to life during times of upheaval.

Absence reporting procedures

 If your child is absent from school due to illness, please telephone school on 0121 675 7702 and inform the office staff or leave a message ideally before 9am. If your child’s illness lasts for more than one day, you must phone school daily and inform us why your child is still absent. If your child’s illness lasts longer than 48hrs and you have not already done so, we advise you to seek medical attention.

Parental illness is NOT an excuse for children not attending school. Children must attend school every day unless they are ill.

Medical Appointments

If your child has a medical appointment, before the appointment takes place, please give a copy of the appointment letter or card to the office staff who will notify the class teacher and a photocopy of the document will be taken. If the appointment letter or card is not submitted, your child’s absence will be recorded as unauthorised.

Safe and Well Home Visits

If your child is absent from school, you do not inform school and we cannot make contact, a member of the pastoral team will visit your home to ask why your child is absent from school. If you are not present, you will be left a letter asking you to contact school. It is very important that you contact school and inform us why your child is absent. If we do not hear from you, we will be concerned and may refer you to Children’s Services.

It is a parent/carer’s legal responsibility to ensure their children receive appropriate education. Failing to send your child to school regularly without good reason is a criminal offence. If your child's level of absence is a concern, school will offer advice and support to improve attendance. After this and if there is no improvement, any unauthorised absence may result in the school and the Local Authority taking legal action, using 'Fast Track monitoring.'

FAST-track to Attendance’ – The Four Step ‘Early Help’ Approach

Fast-track to Attendance’ is an Early Help approach to improving pupil attendance which also seeks to act quickly where there is unauthorised absence. It is for all schools, academies and alternative providers. There are no specific timelines to follow, the process can be used at a time which is right for the individual pupil and schools have only one formal letter they will need to send to each parent.

Leave in Term Time Leave of Absence from School

Head teachers may not grant any leave of absence during term time unless there are exceptional circumstances. Unauthorised absence of this nature will be subject to a fine. The head teacher will determine the number of school days a child can be away from school if the leave is granted. Please observe these regulations. They have been re-written with the education of your child at their heart. Should there be any exceptional circumstances, please make an appointment to discuss them with the Head Teacher before making any bookings.

 Lateness

As you may be aware, the law treats some persistent lateness in the same way as irregular attendance and parents may be prosecuted by the local authority if late arrival is not resolved.

Poor punctuality can lead to your child…

• Feeling embarrassed in front of their friends
• Missing the beginning of vital lessons
• Missing important instructions for the rest of the school day
• Learning bad habits which could affect their employability in the future

If your child arrives at school after 9.00am when the doors are closed, your child will be admitted by staff in the front office. You will be asked to sign your child in stating the reason for the lateness. This will be logged and monitored by the pastoral team, for improvement. If there is no improvement, you will be invited into school to meet with the Headteacher and a Governor.

If your child arrives at school after 9.15 am, your child will be recorded with a U code which means Unauthorised Absence. (Please refer to the Fast Track guidance) 

Lateness and Unauthorised absences will be taken into consideration at the end of term when the Attendance Awards are issued. Please be aware, children who are constantly late or have unauthorised absences will not receive their Attendance Award.

Late Collection Policy

On the 1st April 2016, Birmingham City Council produced the document ‘Emergency Procedures when a child is not collected’. You can view this document on our website in the Policies category or click the link below. Alternatively, you can request a copy at the school office. We are now required to follow these procedures.

Please be aware that the late collection of any child will result in a late collection charge of £5.00 per child, per 10 minutes, being imposed. This charge is to support the additional staff costs of out of hour’s childcare, ensuring your child is looked after and safe until you arrive.

Please also be aware that if a child has not been collected after 45 minutes we are obliged to report the matter to Birmingham City Council’s Children Advice and Support Service