Current Attendance:

Whole School Attendance:

The school’s overall attendance rate for 2020/21 was 90.4% this is 5.9% below the national average of 95.3%

Our whole school attendance target for this year is 96%

Our current whole school attendance rate is 94.88%

Persistent Absentees:

The school’s persistent absentee rate for 2020/21 was 28.9% compared with the national average of 10.9%.

That is a staggering difference of 18.0%

Our persistent absentee rate target for this year is less than 10%

We need to work together to achieve our targets.

MISS SCHOOL – MISS OUT!

Every single day a child is absent from school = a day of lost learning

For some parents, 90% may seem like an acceptable level of attendance, but the reality is that 90% attendance means your child will miss half a school day each week or 19 days of school during the year – that’s nearly 4 school weeks!

If your child has 90% attendance each year they are at our school they will miss a total of 28 weeks – which is half a school year lost!

Give your child the best start in life – every school day counts

Children are identified as persistent absentees if they miss 10% or more school sessions available to them.

Why it is important for your child to arrive at school on time:

Arriving late to school:

• Can cause embarrassment for the child
• Can cause disruption to the rest of the class
• Can make it harder for the child to settle
• Impacts on the child’s learning, progress and achievement

Being 15 minutes late each day during an entire school year is the same as missing two whole weeks of school!

Attendance Monitoring:

Pupil attendance is monitored regularly. Each term we will write to parents letting them know the attendance percentage for the child using the traffic light system below:

If a child’s attendance remains below 90% parents/carers will be asked to attend a meeting to discuss how we can work together to improve attendance.

If following that meeting a child’s attendance continues to be of concern a referral will be made to the Extended Services Support Team or the Attendance Improvement Office at Leeds City Council.

If the school has child protection concerns then the school’s child protection procedures would be followed immediately.

All staff will work with parents and carers to help them meet their legal responsibility, in ensuring their children attend school regularly. Children of compulsory school age (5 to 16 years) must, by law receive a full time education.

Each person with parental responsibility could be taken to court and fined up to £2,500, or sentenced to three months in prison, for each child who is not attending school regularly or who is persistently late.

How parents/carers can help:

• Establish a good routine in the mornings and evenings so your child is prepared for the school day ahead
• Ensure your child arrives at school on time
• Arrange dental and medical appointments outside the school day when possible
• Always inform school by 9.00am if your child is absent due to illness
• Take family holidays outside term time
• Discuss any problems or difficulties with school - we are here to help and support where we can

MISS SCHOOL – MISS OUT!

Illness:

If your child is away from school for any reason it will have an impact on their learning. As a parent/carer it is natural to want the best for your child and so you want to take care of them when they are ill.

However, we know that sometimes parents keep their children away from school when it is not strictly necessary to do so.

There is no need to keep your child away from school if they have (as long as they are receiving treatment if required):

• Cold sores
• Glandular Fever
• Head Lice
• Threadworms
• Tonsillitis
• Cold/Cough
• Ringworm
• Warts
• Verrucae
• Slapped Cheek

We are able to administer medication in school in order to help children be able to attend.

Please keep your child at home and follow the recommended guideline if they have:

If your child is ill and you are unsure whether they could be in school ring and talk it through with the staff.

If your child needs a medical appointment please try and make it out of school hours.

Family Holidays:

You can demonstrate your commitment to your child’s education by not taking holidays during term time. Any child who is absent from school due to a holiday will miss out on important learning and may fall behind.

In each school year there are 190 statutory school days which gives plenty of time for holidays to be arranged outside term time.

Holidays taken during term time will be recorded as an unauthorised absence and a penalty fine may be issued.

If every child achieved 100% attendance that would be fantastic. However, realistically we understand that genuine illness and exceptional circumstances can sometimes prevent school attendance.

Requests for leave can only be granted by schools if there are exceptional circumstances, and holidays are not considered exceptional. They must also be made to the school in advance, as the Department for Education has told schools that they cannot authorise any absences after they have been taken.

You can download the form for exceptional leave here.