Key Information

Children will be registered as late (L) if they arrive after 8.45am.  Registration closes at 9.05am.  Arrival after the close of registration will be marked as unauthorised absence code ‘U’ in line with Hampshire County Council and Department for Education (DfE) guidance. This mark shows them to be on site, but is legally recorded as an absence.

Absence

If your child will not be in school, please ensure that our school office is notified by 9.00am at the latest on each day of absence. This is to ensure that we know where your child is and that they are safe.

It is our procedure to telephone contacts to ensure that we know a child’s whereabouts if they are not in school and will continue to telephone all listed contacts until we hear. If we have not made contact with an adult who can confirm the child’s whereabouts and safety by 10.00am then we will take further action to ensure a child’s safety, this may include visiting your home or in circumstances of extreme concern, requesting the police to make a welfare visit. This procedure is in light of serious incidents throughout the country where schools have not taken safeguarding seriously enough when children are absent from school (please click here for an example).

Illness

Most illnesses can be classified as one of a few minor health conditions.  The NHS give the following guidelines:

• Cough & Cold - A child with a minor cough or cold may attend school. If the cold is accompanied by raised temperature, shivers or drowsiness, the child should stay off school, visit the GP and return to school 24 hours after they are feeling better. If your child has a more severe and long-lasting cough, consult your GP, who can provide guidance on whether the child should stay off school.
• Raised Temperature - If your child has a raised temperature, they should not attend school, they can return 24 hours after they are feeling better.
• Rash - Rashes can be the first sign of many infectious illnesses such as chicken pox and measles. Children with these conditions should not attend school. If your child has a rash, check with your GP before sending them to school.
• Vomiting and Diarrhoea - Children with these conditions should be kept off school. They can return 48 hours after their symptoms disappear. Most Cases of vomiting and diarrhoea get better without treatment, but if symptoms persist, consult your GP.
• Sore Throat/ Tonsillitis - A sore throat alone does not have to keep a child from school. If it is accompanied by a raised temperature then the child should stay home.
• https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/is-my-child-too-ill-for-school/

Late Children

 If your child is late for school he/she must come to the school office.  This is to ensure that every child has been registered in school in the case of a fire drill or emergency. 

If your child arrived late to school after 8.45am. This is marked as L in our registers. However, if the arrival is after the close of registration at 9.05 will be marked as unauthorised absence and coded U, in line with Hampshire County Council and Department of Education guidance. This mark shows them to be on site, but is legally recorded as an absence.

Hampshire County Council will issue a Penalty Notice for any unauthorised absence where the pupil has been persistently late (coded U) for up to 10 sessions (five days) after the register has been closed.

https://documents.hants.gov.uk/model-attendance-policy-for-schools-academies-and-education-centres-final.pdf

 If you child is going to arrive late due to an appointment and would like a school lunch please telephone the office by 09:00 to place the order.

Medical Appointments

Please try to not make non-urgent medical and dental appointments during school hours.  If you need to take your child out of school for a medical appointment please provide evidence of the appointment (via email preferably).  Please ensure you sign your child in and out at the school office.

As a school we take punctuality and attendance very seriously due to the high value we place on your child receiving their full curriculum entitlement.

Procedure for recording and notifying parents of lateness:

If your child is late, after 8.45am when the classroom doors and link door closes, then your child will be marked as late ‘L’ and you will receive an app message to inform you.

If your child is late 5 times in a half term we will write you to in order to inform you and request that punctuality improves.

If your child is late a further 5 times then we will write to you again and request that you arrange to meet with the Headteacher. At this meeting your child’s attendance will be discussed and we can explore other external agencies who may be able to support your family if you are struggling. It will also make clear that any further lateness will not be authorised and therefore 10 further lates will result in legal intervention such as a Penalty Notice.

Lateness after formal close of registration:

If your child is late, after the formal close of registration at 9.05am, then your child unauthorised absence code ‘U’ in line with Hampshire County Council and Department for Education (DfE) guidance. This mark shows them to be on site, but is legally recorded as an absence and you will receive an app message to inform you.

If your child is late, after 9.05am, on 5 occasions then we will write to you requesting a meeting to discuss your child’s attendance and explore other external agencies who may be able to support your family if you are struggling.

If your child is late, after 9.05am, on 10 occasions within a 100 day period then parents will receive a Penalty Notice.

Attendance Concerns:

The Government definition of a persistent absentee is a child with an attendance of less than 90%. That is the equivalent of missing 5 days of school in 10 weeks (approximately a term). You can find Hampshire County Council attendance guidance at https://www.hants.gov.uk/educationandlearning/behaviour-attendance-parents , which highlights the importance of good attendance on attainment at the end of Year 6 and at GCSEs. It also notes that if a child maintains 90% attendance over 5 years they will have missed over a year and a half of school in total! An attendance rate of 90% in one academic year is the equivalent of four whole school weeks missed: