Attendance Policy

Sickness

Parents/carers are requested to telephone the office on 01297 560591 and leave a message before 08:55am if their child is going to be absent/late. The reason for absence must be in full ie sickness on Sunday, temperature, severe cold etc. Please do not leave vague messages i.e. unwell, ill or under the weather as the school office will have to call you back for more information.

We have a 48-hour rule for any sickness/diarrhoea to try to prevent any outbreaks. Please ensure that if your child has suffered from either of these, they remain absent from school for a clear 48 hour period from the last attack.

Please report all sickness to the School Office; please do not contact the class teacher or send a message via a sibling.

Registers and Lateness

The school gates open at 8.45 am when a member of staff will be on duty. 

The class register opens at 8.55am and closes at 9.30am. If your child arrives after the register has started at 8.55am, but before it has closed at 9.30am they will be coded as late (L). If they arrive after 9.30am they will be coded as arriving after the register has closed (U) which is an unauthorised absence.

The school attendance policy states that the attendance of children who arrive late will be registered as follows:

- A child arriving after the register has started but before the register has closed will be coded as “late” (code L).

- A child arriving after the register has closed will be coded as “Late after registration closed” (code U). This is counted as an “Unauthorised Absence”.

Office staff will check all class registers between 8:55am and 9:30am daily to identify those pupils who are absent. Where a child is absent from school, and we have not received any written or verbal communication from the parents, we will initiate the first day contact procedures. 

If no message is left with the school office, we will telephone each of the contacts on the list provided by parents. If we are still unable to get confirmation as to why the child is not at school, we will proceed to a welfare check (this is a visit to the home address). This is normally carried out by the senior staff from the school.

This is the school’s duty of care and safeguarding for your child.

Medical Appointments

If possible please try to make any medical appointments outside of school hours. Children having to leave class halfway through a lesson not only disrupts their learning but also affects other children in class.  If you have to make a medical appointment during school hours, please provide evidence to the School Office.

Opening Hours 

School hours are 8:55am until 3:25pm Monday to Friday. 

This means the school is open for 32.5 hours in a typical week.