Good attendance is vital for so many reasons. We want all children to be at school at least 97% of the time as this is classed as ‘good’ attendance. Parents are responsible by law to ensure their children arrive on time and attend school regularly.
Parents of compulsory school age (five to sixteen) children have a legal duty to ensure their children receive suitable education, either by regular attendance at school or otherwise than at a school (this includes home education). If a child is registered at school, parents have the legal responsibility for ensuring that their child attends regularly.
(Department for Education 2012)
In total there are 175 non-school days a year. This gives families the opportunity to:
- Spend time together.
- Go on family visits.
- Go on holiday.
- Go shopping.
- Go on days out.
- Attend routine appointments.
Your child’s education is your child’s future
What can parents and carers do to encourage school attendance?
- Encourage your child to come to school. School is fun and exciting!
- Don’t keep them off from school unless they are REALLY poorly.
- Give yourself and your child plenty of time in the morning. Stick to the same routine.
- Make sure your child goes to bed at a reasonable time.
- Contact the school first thing in the morning if they are unwell and keep school informed.
- Bring your child to school on time and pick them up on time.
- Let the school know if you change your address and/or telephone number.
- If you are experiencing problems with getting your child to school, speak to the teaching staff early.
- Don’t take holidays in term time.
Attendance Below 95%
Attendance is monitored half termly by the Attendance Team and individual children, who are a cause for concern, are closely tracked. Parents may receive advice letters and/or be asked to arrange a meeting to discuss things further.
Wycliffe follow Bradford Council’s Staged Intervention Process for Poor Attendance. More information can be found at this site Poor Attendance – Staged Intervention Process – UPDATED 21st FEBRUARY 2022 | Bradford Schools Online
A child with attendance below 90% is classed as a ‘Persistent Absentee’. Meetings will take place if a persistent absentee’s attendance does not improve, the school will take the necessary steps to address this.
Poor Punctuality
If your child is frequently late for school it adds up to lost learning and causes a disruptive start to the day:
- Arriving 5 minutes late every day adds up to over 3 days lost each year
- Arriving 15 minutes late every day is the same as being absent for 2 weeks a year
- Arriving 30 minutes late every day is the same as being absent for 19 days a year
- 19 days lost a year through being late = 90% attendance.
- If a child misses just one day a week, over the course of their school career they will miss two years of schooling.
Leave of Absence
Any leave of absence for a child of statutory school age must be applied for, in writing, to the Headteacher. Headteachers should only authorise leave of absence in exceptional circumstances and each leave of absence request will be considered separately.
Attendance Team Support
Families can speak to the attendance team regarding any issues with attendance or punctuality. The team can offer a range of support to our families.
Mr C Holdsworth – Deputy Headteacher / SENDCO (Lead)
Mr N Hussain – Pastoral Lead
Mrs S Carroll – Administration