Attendance

At Archibald First School we work as a team to ensure we have very high attendance levels so that each child is given the opportunity to achieve their full potential. All children of compulsory school age must receive a suitable full-time education, this is stated in law. Once your child is registered at school, you are legally responsible for making sure that they attend regularly. If your child fails to do so, you risk getting a penalty notice or being prosecuted.

Please read our statutory policies related to attendance, punctuality and absence.

AFS Attendance and Punctuality Policy 2024

We also ask you to look at the DfE Statutory document Working Together to Improve School Attendance.

Expectations for Attendance

The table below sets out the expectations on each party with regards to children’s attendance.

Our Responsibility as a School

At Archibald First School, we will use every opportunity to promote the importance of good attendance and punctuality.

We will:

Provide and promote a welcoming and positive atmosphere so that our children feel safe and valued.
Celebrate good attendance including acknowledging good attendance of pupils or classes.
Ensure that attendance is effectively monitored.
Ensure that attendance registers are kept accurately, using all necessary register codes.
Give pupil attendance updates through our website, assemblies and newsletters.
Phone parents on the first day of absence if a reason for absence has not been received.
Contact parents when there is concern about a child’s absence either by phone, email or letter.
Issue at least termly attendance letters and including a full attendance certificate where there is an issue with attendance.
Explore concerns around pupil’s attendance to see how school can support the family.
Following the Children Missing Education guidance if required.
Make a referral to the any necessary service such as Early Help, Children’s Service or the police.
Continuing to undertake regular attendance audits.
Ensure that there is a designated Senior Leader responsible for the strategic approach to attendance in school. In our school, this is Rebecca Turner, Headteacher.
Ensure that governors maintain a strategic oversight of our attendance policy and its impact on attendance.
Encourage our children to have a positive attitude towards attendance and punctuality so that they can retain this into adult life.

Parent's Responsibilities

The Education Act 1996 states that all children should attend school regularly and punctually. The Act states, “If a child of compulsory school age who is registered at a school fails to attend regularly at the school, his/her parent is guilty of an offence”.

We ask parent/carers to:

Encourage school attendance and to share the value of attending school regularly.
Ensure that your child arrives at school on time each day.
Let the school know if your child is going to be late, e.g., if a car breaks down, if an urgent appointment has been made.
Provide up to date contact numbers and changes of address.
Provide details of at least two contacts for emergency use.
Notify the school when your child is unable to attend, with a reason, on the first day of the absence.
Telephone the school after the first day of absence if the absence is continuing.
Keep the school well informed, especially about circumstances that might mean your child is absent for several days.
Provide medical evidence, if possible, indicating attendance at the dentist, doctor, or optician before the arranged appointment unless an emergency situation arises. This might include an appointment note or an NHS App message. Whenever possible all appointments should be made outside of school hours.
Book family holidays during school holiday time.

Illness

If your child is absent please phone school to advise us on the first day of the absence by 9:30am. You can leave a message on the absence line. Please state your child’s name, class and reason for absence. It is important to give a reason, so we are able to monitor illness within school. All attendance is closely monitored.

This document may help when your child is feeling under the weather…

UKHSA Should I keep my child off school guidance

Medical Appointments

If your child must attend an appointment during school time, you must provide evidence of the appointment which indicates attendance at the dentist, doctor, or optician before the arranged appointment unless an emergency situation arises. This might include an appointment note or an NHS App message. Whenever possible all appointments should be made outside of school hours, especially those that are routine appointments.

Please come to the school office a couple of days before the appointment with any evidence you may have from the doctor or hospital with the date/time of the appointment.

It is up to the Headteacher if these absences are authorised or not,

Medication in School

To help children attend school we will administer long term prescribed medication when required. If your child requires any medicine – including inhalers this must be clearly labelled. Please complete a medicine consent form at the School Office.

If your child requires 4 doses a day of a medicine, for example antibiotics, we will administer one dose at lunchtime. Medicine must be passed to and from the office by an adult.

Request for Pupil Absence

Holidays in term time are not permitted. The government make clear that Head Teachers may not grant any leave of absence unless there are exceptional circumstances which does not include holiday. The regulations also set out procedures for issuing penalty notices (fines) to each parent who fails to ensure their children’s regular attendance at school. If you wish to request an absence from school you must complete a form which can be collected from the school office or accessed below.
Leave of Absence Request Form Leave of Absence Request Form