Attendance

Did you know….?

  • 1 in 3 children with poor attendance (below 80%) do not achieve any qualifications at all
  • A child with 85% attendance will miss 29 days in a year – that is a half term of learning lost!
  • A child with 80% attendance will miss 38 days in a year!
  • A child who misses 38 days each year will miss 2 whole years of learning by the age of 16

Children must only be absent from school if they are ill.

If your child is ill or unable to come into school for another reason, such as a family bereavement or religious observance, please telephone the office to let us know the reason for their absence.  The school’s telephone number is (020) 7431 0961.  If you are unable to telephone, please send a note explaining the reason for the absence.

Appointments with doctors, dentists or at a hospital should be made outside school hours or in the holidays.  Where this is not possible, a note or an appointment card must be bought into the school office the day beforehand so that the register can be marked accordingly.

If parents and carers do not provide a reason for the absence, the absence remains unauthorised.  If a child has missed a substantial amount of time from school, the Headteacher will contact the parents or carers.  The Education Welfare Officer may also contact the family.

Following recent changes to legislation, holidays taken during the school term cannot be authorised by the school.

From September 2016 children with 100% attendance and perfect punctuality each term are awarded a certificate and star to celebrate their achievement.

If your child becomes ill during the day, or has an accident that requires you to pick him or her up, we will always contact you, having first taken necessary steps ourselves to ensure your child is safe and cared for.  It is therefore vital that your contact details are up to date, particularly mobile phone numbers, and that someone is able to come, if necessary, to take your child home.

Punctuality – a vital life skill and also good manners

Punctuality is also very important. The school day starts promptly at 8.55am, and immediately after the register has been taken the children are straight into their first lesson, usually English or mathematics. If children do arrive late they find it very hard to catch up on the work they have missed. If children arrive after the register has been taken they will be marked as L (late). Any child who arrives at school from 9.30am onwards will be marked as U (unauthorised late). This will count as an unauthorised absence.

For full details about attendance, click HERE to read the school’s Attendance Policy.