Report an Absence
Every School Day Counts!
For detailed information please see our Attendance Policy
There are only 190 statutory school days in a year, leaving 175 days, including weekends and holidays, which are available for you to use for holidays.
The link below takes you to an overview of school attendance and absence from the Government with advice around holidays
School Attendance & Absence (gov.uk)
If you do decide to take a leave of absence that has not been authorised by the Headteacher, this will be recorded in the register as an unauthorised absence. This may result in a truancy penalty notice (TPN) of £60 (rising to £120) per parent, per child being issued.
Parents/carers should never simply discount the amount of a penalty notice from the cost of a cheaper holiday, because a TPN is classed as a criminal offence and may result in prosecution and a criminal record.
Before a Special Leave of Absence is authorised, the Headteacher will consider the following points :
- Your child’s age
- The stage of your child’s education
- The time of year (e.g. SATs)
- The exceptional circumstances for Special Leave.
The amount of time the Headteacher is allowed to authorise in various scenarios is stated on the Request for Leave of Absence Form. It may be that some of the absence is authorised, and some not, but each case is viewed individually.
Special Leave of Absence Form
You may print the form below or call into the office to collect a hard copy form.
Request for Leave for Absence Form
Attendance and Late starts to school
We know that those children who have the best rates of attendance achieve the best results. Children need a good start to the school day to enable them to settle into their class with their classmates. It is not only disruptive to your child to arrive late but to all the other children in class and your child can miss out on key phonics or guided reading sessions. Please ensure that your child enters their classroom by 8:50 am in time for registration.
Missing 10 minutes each day might not seem like much but it actually equates to over 6 school days lost in a year!
Please consider the unspoken message to the value of education you are giving your child by regularly missing school or being late. We want our children to be prepared for secondary school and later, the work place and its never too early to instil a pride for learning and good attendance. If you are struggling with morning arrival, please talk to us and we will work with you to find out what the barriers are and where we might be able to help. We will work with families and children that may require additional support and flexibility for arrival times.
Holidays in Term Time
Procedure
Parents complete a request form for leave of absence and return it to the school for authorisation at least 1 week before the requested date.
Parents are informed of the school’s decision (ideally within 5 working days).
If the holiday is not to be authorised, the Education Welfare Officer (EWO) will receive a copy of this communication with the parents at the same time – in such cases a Holidays In Term Time (HITT) warning notice may be served.
If a warning has been served and the holiday is taken and the conditions are in line with the Code of Conduct, a Truancy Penalty Notice (TPN) may be served. This is a fine of up to £120 per child.
If the TPN is not paid the Local Authority may prosecute for the absence under the Code of Conduct Regulations.
Please support us in encouraging good attendance and using school holidays for family time.
EVERY SCHOOL DAY COUNTS