Attendance and punctuality

Useful Contact Numbers:

School: 0161 624 9939

Mrs J. Knight

Attendance Manager

Why does attendance matter?

90% Attendance sounds good – HOWEVER!
1 School year at 90% attendance = 4 weeks of lessons MISSED!
5 School years at 90% attendance = ½ year of school MISSED!
17 School days missed in a year = GCSE grade DROP in achievement. (DfE)

Reporting absence

You should report your child’s absence each day before the start of school, following the instructions on the school answer machine (0161 624 9939).

If you know your child is going to be absent for a genuine reason, please let us know in advance.

If you do not notify School on each day of absence, the absence will be marked as unauthorised. 

Medical evidence may be requested if your child is absent for extended periods of time or has persistent absences throughout the year.

Medical Appointment

Every effort must be made to arrange medical appointments outside of the School day, especially if they are routine appointments.

However, we recognise that this is not always possible with Hospital, Orthodontists appointments and for emergency Doctor or Dental appointments.

If you do need your child to attend a medical appointment within the School day, he/she must bring the appointment card to Mrs Knight in advance of the appointment, so that we can make sure we know exactly where the student is going and how they are getting there for safeguarding reasons. Students are expected to attend School before or after the appointment, depending on the time of the appointment.

Medical evidence can be in the form of the following:

• A medical appointment card
• A medical appointment letter
• A copy of a prescription with the name of the child and the date
• Medication with a chemist’s label showing the name and the date
• An ‘unfit for School’ declaration or letter from your GP in the case of acute prolonged illness
• A hospital discharge letter

Request for leave of absence

The school cannot authorise request for leave of absence during term time unless the Headteacher is satisfied that there are exceptional circumstances which warrant the leave.

This means that the majority of requests for leave of absence will not be granted and the absence will be recorded as unauthorised.  School will refer any unauthorised leave of 10 sessions (5 school days) or more to the Local Authority for a Penalty Notice to be issued per parent.

A Penalty Notice is a fine of £120 to be paid within 28 days.  This is reduced to £60 is paid within the first 21 days.  If left unpaid the Local Authority will proceed to prosecution.

Unauthorised absence

Unauthorised absences are those which the school does not consider reasonable.

These include;

• Parents keeping children off school unnecessarily
• Truancy during the school day
• Absences which have never been properly explained
• Children who arrive at school too late to get a mark

Support for Students

Special arrangements can be made to support your child to remain in School during periods of illness or injury.

Examples include:

• Access to lifts so that the student does not have to navigate stairs..
• Taking medicine in School, supervised by the Assistant Head of Year (details must be provided in writing, with authorisation from the Parent/Guardian).
• An ‘early exit from lessons’ pass, so that the student can avoid busy corridors/paths if they are using crutches or have mobility issues.
• Access to the School Nurse through a referral system.

Please help us to help your child

For further information please refer to our Attendance policy in the About Us/Policies section.

Punctuality   

As you may be aware, the law treats some persistent lateness in the same way as irregular attendance and parents/carers may be prosecuted by the Local Authority if late arrival is not resolved.   

Poor punctuality can lead to your child:  

• Feeling embarrassed in front of their peers.  
• Missing valuable learning and introduction at the start of lessons.  
• Missing important instructions/information for the rest of the school day/week.  
• Learning bad habits which could affect their employability in the future.  

Procedures:  

The 2024-2025 procedure is that pupils who are late to school and/or lessons repeatedly will incur detentions that will take place on a Friday afternoon with either the Pastoral team or the Senior Leadership team. Parents/carers will get a notification of this via the Classcharts app. Poor punctuality has a negative impact on progress and good punctuality is a life skill we want to instill in our young people.