Please find information relating to attendance below.

We recognise that high levels of school attendance are significant to raising standards in education and ensuring all pupils can fulfil their potential.  It is an assumption so widely understood but insufficiently stated that children and young people need to attend school regularly to benefit from their education.  Missing out on lessons leaves pupils vulnerable to falling behind and achieving less in both primary and secondary school.

  • The overall aim of the attendance policy is to:
  • Keep children safe and ensure their welfare needs are met in accordance with safeguarding practice. 
  • Provide a stable environment in which our children can learn. 
  • Support parents to perform their legal duty by ensuring their children who are of compulsory school age and registered at the academy, attend school regularly.
  • Maximise educational opportunities for all our pupils, ensuring there is a consistent and fair approach with equal opportunities for all.
  • Encourage good habits of school attendance with a vision on early intervention by supporting families with children in the Early Years Foundation stage.

 We do this by:

  • Applying a robust attendance process across all four academies. 
  • Notifying parents at the earliest opportunity where attendance is below expected national standards.
  • Ensuring pupils are punctual to their lessons and attend school on time.
  • Working with parents to reduce illness and medical absence
  • Working in collaboration with partner agencies, such as health visitors, school nurses, children’s services and youth services across all levels of the needs assessment.
  • Ensuring every pupil has access to full-time education to which they are entitled; which includes individual education plans.
  • Identifying vulnerable children who may have a specific area of need to enable them to attend school
  • Analysis of attendance data to highlight areas of concern, particularly amongst vulnerable groups, including the identification and tracking of persistent absence pupils
  • Working with the families of children in the early years’ foundation stage to ensure there is a readiness to learn. 
  • Highlighting the importance of attendance with pupils through achievement and rewards. 
  • The legal powers and duties that govern school attendance and explains how they apply to local authorities, academies, head teachers, school staff, governing bodies, pupils and parents, are contained in:
  • The Education Act 1996, sections 434(1)(3)(4) & (6) and 458(4) & (5)
  • The Education (Pupil Registration) (England) Regulations 2006
  • The Education (Pupil Registration) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2010
  • The Education (Pupil Registration) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2011
  • The Education (Pupil Registration) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2013

Further advice and guidance provided by the DfE on specific aspects of attendance is referenced in the policy.

Leave of absence form

For the full policy please see our School and Trust Policies section.