Attendance Matters

At Ightenhill Primary School, we recognise the importance of our students attending school on time, every day.  We seek to maximise the attendance rates both for our students as individuals and for our school.

Research shows a clear link between poor attendance/punctuality and poor attainment levels.

Regular attendance is key to enabling students to expand their academic opportunities and become resilient and confident members of society. We recognise that parents/carers are primarily responsible for ensuring that their child attends school however as a school, we work in partnership with parents/carers to support and overcome barriers that may lead to non-attendance

Reporting a student absence

Parents have a legal duty to ensure that their child attends school regularly and arrives on time however we ask that parents/carers follow our attendance procedures if their child is absent from school.

If your child is going to be absent from school, you must telephone the school on 01282 428246 on the first day of absence and on each day of absence before 9.10 am. The students name, class and a reason for absence must be provided.

If we do not receive communication regarding your child’s absence, you will receive a phone call home or a text from our Attendance Team. A home visit may be made by the Attendance Team depending on your child’s attendance record, the number of days that your child has been absent from school and the nature of the absence. The purpose of the home visits is to communicate with parents/carers about their child’s attendance and offer support where needed.  

Medical appointments during school hours

We ask that you make every effort to avoid booking medical and dental appointments during school hours. Where this is unavoidable, parents/carers should provide school with medical evidence of the appointment, as well as your child’s name and form. If it is necessary for your child to attend their appointment, they must attend school before and after their appointment to avoid an unauthorised absence. Opticians appointments can be made on an evening and at the weekend therefore, unless your child requires an emergency appointment, this will be unauthorised.

Leave of absence during term time

The Department for Education (DfE) makes it very clear that headteachers cannot authorise any leave of absence, including term-time holidays. Any unauthorised leave of absence that is taken over 4.5 days will result in a Fixed Penalty Notice.

Parents wishing to apply for their child to be granted leave from school should complete the Leave of Absence form from the school office and return it to school as soon as possible. Upon receipt, the Headteacher and Attendance Team will decide as to whether to authorise the absence. A Leave of Absence may be given in exceptional circumstances. This must be requested in advance of the absence.

Punctuality

Our school day at Ightenhill commences at 8.50am. Students are expected to enter school between 8.50am and 9.00 am. Our registration session ends at 9.10am. Children will receive a late mark if they arrive after 9.10am. Children will be marked as an unauthorised absence if they arrive after 9.30am.

The normal school day ends at 3.30pm. Some of our extra-curricular clubs are held at the end of the school day.

We have a before-school club and after-school club provision which can be booked the school office.

Promoting positive school attendance

At Ightenhill we have a range of strategies in place to promote and support positive attendance.

We set attendance targets and celebrate positive attendance.

Our ambitious school attendance target for 2024-2025 is 96%.

We are also aiming to reduce our Persistent Absence (PA) rates for all pupil groups.

Our weekly attendance rates are shared with parents on our weekly newsletters.

Use this link to download our newsletters.

We employ an Attendance and Family Engagement Leader to work with families to improve our school attendance rates and to reduce persistent absence (less than 90% attendance).

                               Mrs J Thompson - Attendance and Family Engagement Leader

School Attendance Policy

A copy of our School Attendance Policy can be found on this link:

School Attendance Policy 2024

Attendance newsletter

As part of our attendance strategy to improve and promote attendance we are launching a termly Attendance Newsletter.

The aim of this newsletter is to:

· Continue to raise awareness of the importance of good attendance

· Inform parents/carers of the school policies and procedures

· Inform parents/carers of the schools current attendance figure

· Promote the rewards for pupils who attend everyday and on time.

This newsletter will be issued termly to all parents, I hope that you will find this helpful and informative.