Attendance
Attendance like safeguarding is everyone’s business. Children, parents and carers must feel safe, welcome and supported. We have developed a good supportive network that promotes good attendance and monitors patterns of absence so that we can work together to remove barriers to attendance.
- All children are expected to attend school regularly, punctually and prepared for the day. School doors open at 8:45 and close at 8:55am. It is really important to children not to be late as this supports their mental well-being.
- We provide a school that has a calm, orderly, safe and supportive environment where all pupils want to be and are keen to learn.
- We aim to work in partnership with families to identify and find supportive routes to improving attendance.
- We promote good attendance as this is a protective factor for all children.
- We know high attendance is essential for children to get the most out of their school experience, including their attainment, well-being and life chances. Those children with the highest attainment levels also have the highest attendance rates. (At KS2 pupils not meeting the standard had an absence rate of 4.7%, compared to those meeting the standard with an absence rate of 3.5%)
- We use data to spot patterns of absence before they become persistent or severe absence so that we can work with local partners to re-engage pupils with their access to education.
- We use the latest guidance from the DFE “ Working Together to improve school attendance“ to inform and guide our approach.
Universal Support
- Build strong relationships with families, listening to and understanding the reasons for absence
- Work in partnerships with families to identify and find supportive routes to improving absence
- · Accurately complete attendance registers and have effective day to day processes in place to follow up absence and record the reason for absence.
- Inform parents each half term of their child’s attendance rate through a report.
- Develop and maintain a whole school culture that promotes the benefits of high attendance.
- Half-termly monitor and analyse attendance and absence data to identify children or cohorts that require support with their attendance.
- Promote the importance of regular attendance on our website, in our weekly newsletters and in regular communication with parents.
- Offer a return to school visit after the summer holidays with the pastoral team.
Reducing persistent and severe absence
Persistent absence is where a pupil misses 10% or more of school, and severe absence is where a pupil misses 50% or more of school.
The school will:
- Use attendance data to find patterns and trends of persistent and severe absence
- Consider potential safeguarding issues and, where suspected or present, address them in line with Keeping Children Safe in Education 2025
- Hold regular meetings with the parents of pupils who the school (and/or local authority) considers to be vulnerable, or are persistently or severely absent, to:
o Discuss attendance and engagement at school
o Listen, and understand barriers to attendance
o Explain the help that is available
o Explain the potential consequences of, and sanctions for, persistent and severe absence
o Review any existing actions or interventions
