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Attendance

At Lionel Walden Primary School, we expect all children on roll to attend, when the school is in session, as long as they are fit and healthy enough to do so. 
 
Children need to be in school every day in order to fulfil their potential.  At Lionel Walden Primary School, we do all that we can to encourage children to attend and put into place appropriate procedures to support attendance when necessary.
 
We believe that the most important factor in promoting good attendance is the development of positive attitudes towards school.  To this end, we strive to make our school a happy and rewarding experience for all children.  We will also make the best provision we can for those children who, for whatever reason, are prevented from coming to school.
 
Excellent attendance really does make a difference to the experience a child gets at school. Missed days means missed learning, and often children find it harder when they return due to this. We appreciate that illness cannot be avoided, but we follow county guidance regarding holidays and will not authorise holidays in term time.

You can find lots of information on whether children can attend school with certain conditions on the NHS website Is my child too ill for school? - NHS . Here it describes certain common illnesses that children are normally able to manage well in school.

To reassure you, there are things that we can do in school to make their day manageable when pupils are suffering from certain low level illnesses. Examples of these things are:

  • Administering medicines (with written parental consent given via the school office)
  • Check-ins with a trusted member of staff
  • Reassurance that we will call a parent if they feel too unwell to complete the day

We often find that pupils are distracted from feeling a little under the weather when they come into school, and have their friends around them and their learning to occupy them.

If you are struggling with maintaining good attendance, for whatever reason, then please talk to us.  We know that a lot of families already have a supportive network of relatives, friends and community groups. However additional support is also available for families via an Early Help Assessment, where help can be provided from trained professionals who can provide support, signposting and access your community offer, should you feel that this would be useful to you.  If you would like to discuss this process in more detail, please contact the office in the first instance.
The school day for children begins at 8:45 am and ends at 3:15 pm. The school gates will open at 8:35 am to allow a prompt start to the day. Registers will close at 8:55 am and after such time children will be marked as late. Lateness can disrupt the start of the day for a child and we strongly encourage punctuality to ensure the best start for your child. If you find getting your child to school on time difficult, then please reach out to us for advice and support.

My child finds coming to school difficult

Sometime children can struggle to come to school.  This can be for various reasons.  It may be that they are struggling with the work in class, or that they are struggling to make friends.  They may have had a recent event in their lives out of school that is impacting on them.  They may be overcoming a serious illness or operation.  Whatever the reason, we encourage you to talk to us so that we can all work together towards a solution.  Here are some resources that may help you in the first instance.

Leave of Absence

As a parent or carer you are strongly urged to avoid leave of absence from school during term time. Should this be absolutely unavoidable, you should complete this form and return it to the School Office prior to the absence.
 
The Government implemented new legislation that came into effect from September 2013 which means that schools may only authorise leave of absence in exceptional circumstances. 
 
A parent or carer does not have any right to leave of absence during term time and, if your request is refused, the absence will be recorded as unauthorised. This could result in legal action being taken or a Penalty Notice being issued by the Local Authority.

If a pupil takes unauthorised term-time leave for 10 sessions or more (generally 5 days) within a rolling 10 school week period, a Penalty Notice must be considered. The sessions do not have to be consecutive.  They can occur over different weeks or even across terms, as long as they fall in the rolling 10-week window.

Schools record attendance in the morning and afternoon sessions.  Any unauthorised half-day or day absences count in the threshold for penalty notices within the rolling 10 school week period.

The fine for a penalty notice is £80 per child, per parent/carer, increasing to £160 if not paid after 21 days but within 28 days for pupils who are of statutory school age. If a penalty notice remains unpaid, parents may be the subject of court proceedings for failing to ensure the regular school attendance of their child and this could result in a fine of up to £2,500 and/or a term of imprisonment of up to 3 months per parent.

For second offences of unauthorised term-time leave (10 consecutive sessions or more) within a three-year rolling period, the fine is a flat £160 per parent, per child. For the third offence in a three-year rolling period, the referral will be automatically considered for prosecution in relation to Section 444 Education Act 1996.

Should leave of absence be taken after permission has been withheld, then this will be recorded as unauthorised absence. This will appear both in the school register and in your child’s report. Persistent unauthorised absence may result in the involvement of the Local Authority Attendance Officer and possible legal proceedings.
 
If 3 or more term time leave Penalty Notices have been issued over a 3 year period then prosecution in relation to Section 444 Education Act 1996, may be considered as an alternative to a Penalty Notice fine being issued. Where a parent takes a child out of school during term time for an extended period (20 days or more), not authorised by the school, prosecution in relation to Section 444 Education Act 1996, may also be considered by the Local Authority.

PLEASE NOTE THAT A SUCCESSFUL PROSECUTION IN RELATION TO SECTION 444 EDUCATION ACT 1996 WILL RESULT IN A CRIMINAL RECORD.

Here is an example of how unauthorised Term Time leave may affect you: