The whole school community- pupils, parents and carers, teachers and support staff and school governors have a responsibility for ensuring good school attendance.
What to do if your child is absent
Parents are asked to notify the school by 9.15 am in the morning of a child’s absence. When a child is absent unexpectedly, the class teacher will record the absence in the register, and will inform the school office, who will contact a parent or guardian, if they haven’t done so already.
A note may be sent to the school prior to the day of absence, e.g. if a child has a medical appointment.
If there is any doubt about the whereabouts of a child, the class teacher should take immediate action by notifying the school office. The school will then be in contact straight away with the parent or guardian, in order to check on the safety of the child.
Lateness
Poor punctuality is not acceptable. If your child misses the start of the school day they can miss work, and do not spent time with their class teacher getting vital information and news for the day. Late arriving pupils also disrupt lessons and can be embarrassing for the child.
How we manage lateness:
- The school day starts at 8.55am and we expect your child to be in class at that time.
- Registers are marked promptly at 9am.
- Any child arriving at school between 9am & 9.15am will receive a late mark.
- At 9.15am the registers will be closed. If your child arrives after that time they will receive a mark that shows them to be on site, but this will not count as a present mark and it will mean they have an unauthorised absence. This may mean that you could face the possibility of a Penalty Notice if the problem persists.
Attendance Officer
Our Attendance Officer, Mrs Heath, will oversee, direct and co-ordinate the school’s work in promoting and improving attendance and will ensure that the Attendance Policy is consistently applied throughout the school. The Attendance Officer will also ensure that up to date attendance data and issues are shared weekly with the Mr Phillips and the Senior Leadership Team. A school attendance report is prepared for the governing body half termly. She will ensure that attendance issue are identified at an early stage and that support is put in place to deal with any difficulties.
If you have any attendance related question or queries, Mrs Heath can be contacted using the following details:
Telephone: 01264 850346
Email: admin@collingbourne.wilts.sch.uk
Termly Attendance Analysis
Our attendance level for the Term 5 2017-18 was 95.6%.
(The national expectation is 96%)
Attendance Analysis Breakdown
16th April to 25th May 2018
Unauthorised Absence = 19 sessions – 8 pupils
Medical/Dental Appointments = 15 sessions – 12 pupils
Illness = 85 sessions – 27 pupils
Authorised Holiday = 14 sessions – 3 pupil
Unauthorised Holiday = 36 sessions – 4 pupils
Late into school before 9.15am = 14 sessions – 7 pupils
Late into school after 9.15am = 2 sessions – 2 pupils
Other Authorised = 54 sessions – 3 pupils
(sessions recorded under two pupils who are on a reduced timetable)
We will continue to implement rigorous and robust systems in order to improve attendance at the school.
Thank you to all parents and carers who have really worked with the school to make sure that their children are in school every day. This is something we are really passionate about.
Important Notice to all Parents and Carers
The Local Authority has amended its Local Code of Conduct in respect of Penalty Notices issued for truancy to include unauthorised pupil leave of absence in term time. If a pupil accumulates 10 or more sessions (5 days) of unauthorised leave of absence within the previous 6 month period of a current academic year, the school must notify the Local Authority and a Penalty Notice will be issued to each parent for each child where that applies.
A penalty of £60 will apply if paid within 21 days, or £120 up to 28 days. If after 28 days the penalty has not been paid, legal proceedings will be taken through the magistrates court for the unauthorised absence.
Requests for leave of absence
The Department for Education (DfE) states; every day at school counts enormously and so does every consecutive day attended by pupils. Pupils need to be able to absorb new facts and knowledge, acquire new skills and consolidate before building further and progressing. They simply cannot do so if their structured school terms are disrupted by too many preventable absences.
Absence during Term Time
Parents do not have a legal right to take children out of school. Headteachers may not grant any leave of absence during term time unless there are exceptional circumstances.
Requests for Leave of Absence
A request for leave of absence must only be considered if:
- The parents the child normally lives with applies in advance for the absence
and
- There are exceptional circumstances for the absence.
If the parent with whom the child normally lives does not apply for the absence this would be considered as unauthorised absence and this parent would be liable to the issue of a Penalty Notice. Absence cannot be authorised if anybody else applies for the holiday.
Requests must be made in writing using the Leave of Absence During Term Time Form (see Appendix 1).
Exceptional Circumstances
Dictionary definition of exceptional (adjective):
- Unusual; not typical
- Forming an exception or rare instance; unusual; extraordinary.
Students
Forest School
Staff
Years Established
Get In Touch
Collingbourne Ducis, Marlborough, Wiltshire SN8 3UH
Telephone: 01264 850346
Email: admin@collingbourne.wilts.sch.uk
School Hours: M-F: 8:45 am - 3:15 pm