Why Attendance Matters

At our school, we know that regular attendance plays a crucial role in helping children feel confident, achieve their best and enjoy their time in school. Being in school every day helps children build strong friendships, develop good learning habits and make steady progress.

We aim for all children to have at least 95% attendance or higher. When attendance drops below this, it can become harder for children to keep up with their learning and feel fully involved in school life.

Did you know?

• Missing just one day a week could mean losing almost 2 years of education over time.
• Being 5 minutes late each day adds up to 5 lost school days a year.
• Being 15 minutes late each day is the same as missing 2 weeks of learning each year.

We work closely with families to encourage good attendance and will always offer support if there are any concerns.

Absence from School

If your child is unwell

We understand that children do become ill from time to time. If your child is too unwell to attend school, please contact the school office before 9.00am and on each day of absence.

If your child has vomiting or diarrhoea, they should stay at home until 48 hours after symptoms have stopped.

If you are unsure whether your child is well enough to attend, please do get in touch—we are happy to help and can refer to NHS guidance. Mild coughs and colds will not usually prevent your child from attending school.

Medical appointments

Where possible, we encourage appointments to be made outside of school hours. If this cannot be avoided, please let the school office know in advance.

If your child is finding it difficult to attend

We want every child to feel happy, safe and confident in school. If your child is reluctant to attend, please speak to the class teacher as soon as possible so we can work together to support them.

Term-time absence

Government guidance states that leave during term time should only be granted in exceptional circumstances. Requests must be made using an Absence Request Form, available from the school office.

Unauthorised absences, including holidays, may result in further action from the Local Authority as a next step.

Supporting Good Attendance

If attendance falls below 95%, we will contact you to offer support and discuss how we can help.

Attendance of 90% or below is classed as persistent absence, which means a child is missing a significant amount of learning time (almost 4 weeks across the year). In these cases, additional support may be offered, and the Education Welfare Officer (EWO) may become involved to work with families.

We are committed to working in partnership with families to ensure every child attends regularly, feels supported and thrives in school.