At Barrow CEVC Primary School, we want every child to benefit fully from the learning, friendships and opportunities that school provides. Regular attendance and good punctuality are an important part of this.
We recognise that children will sometimes be unable to attend school, particularly because of illness. Where attendance becomes a concern, our approach is to work with families to understand the reasons for absence, identify any barriers and provide appropriate support.
If your child is unable to attend school, please contact the School Office on 01284 810223 on the first morning of absence, giving the reason for their absence.
Please continue to keep us informed if the absence continues. If we have not received an explanation for a child's absence, we will contact you as part of our first-day absence procedures.
Where possible, routine medical and dental appointments should be arranged outside school hours.
We understand that this is not always possible. Where an appointment needs to take place during the school day, please let the School Office know in advance and provide confirmation of the appointment if requested.
Children should attend school before and/or after their appointment wherever reasonably possible.
We monitor attendance regularly so that we can identify concerns early and work with families to provide support.
A child is considered persistently absent when they miss 10% or more of their possible school sessions. This is broadly equivalent to attendance of 90% or below.
We will normally contact parents and carers before or when attendance reaches this level to discuss the reasons for absence and any support that may be needed.
If you are experiencing difficulties that are affecting your child's attendance, please contact us as early as possible. We want to work with families to overcome barriers and help children attend regularly.
Parents and carers should arrange holidays and other planned absence outside school term time.
The Headteacher may only grant a leave of absence during term time where there are exceptional circumstances. Each request will be considered individually.
Requests for leave should be made to the school in advance using the school's Leave of Absence Request Form.
A family holiday or other absence for the purposes of leisure or recreation would not normally be considered an exceptional circumstance.
The school gates open at 8.40am. Children should arrive promptly so that they are in school and ready to begin their learning.
The gates close at 8.50am. Children arriving after this time should enter school via the School Office and will be recorded as late.
The register closes at 9.00am. Children arriving after 9.00am will be recorded as an unauthorised absence for the morning session, unless there is an acceptable reason for the late arrival.
We encourage families to establish good morning routines so that children arrive punctually and have a settled and positive start to their school day.
Good attendance is a partnership between school, pupils and families. We recognise that attendance can sometimes be affected by circumstances outside a family's control.
Our priority is to identify concerns early, understand individual circumstances and work together to improve attendance.
For help or advice about your child's attendance, please contact the School Office on 01284 810223.
Our Attendance Policy, Persistent Absence information and Penalty Notice information can be found below.
Regular attendance at school is important for children's learning, wellbeing and wider development. We monitor attendance carefully and work with families at an early stage where we have concerns.
A child is considered to be persistently absent when they miss 10% or more of their possible school sessions. This is broadly equivalent to an attendance figure of 90% or below.
Where a child's attendance falls to, or is approaching, this level, we will contact parents and carers to discuss the reasons for absence and identify any support that may help improve attendance.
Where attendance remains a concern, the school may work with the Education Welfare Officer (EWO) and other appropriate services. This may include meetings with parents or carers, an agreed attendance support plan and regular monitoring and review.
Our approach is always to work in partnership with families to understand and address any barriers to regular attendance. Where support has not been successful or is not engaged with, further action may be considered in line with the Department for Education's statutory attendance guidance and local authority procedures.
If you are experiencing difficulties which are affecting your child's attendance, please contact the school as early as possible so that we can work together to provide appropriate support.
We strongly encourage families to work with us to address any difficulties affecting their child's attendance. Our priority is to provide support and help children attend school regularly.
However, where absence is unauthorised, a Penalty Notice may be considered in line with the Department for Education's national framework and Suffolk County Council procedures.
The national threshold is 10 sessions of unauthorised absence within a rolling period of 10 school weeks. Ten sessions are usually equivalent to 5 school days. The absences do not have to be consecutive and the 10-week period can span different terms or school years.
Unauthorised absence can include unauthorised leave during term time, including holidays, and other unauthorised absences. Arriving after the register has closed is also recorded as an unauthorised absence and can contribute towards the threshold.
When the threshold is reached, the school must consider whether a Penalty Notice should be requested. Each case is considered individually, including whether appropriate support should be offered to help improve attendance.
Penalty Notices are issued per parent, per child.
First Penalty Notice within a three-year period
Second Penalty Notice for the same child within three years
Third or subsequent offence within three years
A third Penalty Notice cannot normally be issued. The case may instead be considered for other legal action, which can include prosecution in the Magistrates' Court.
Parents and carers should arrange holidays and other planned absence outside school term time.
The Headteacher may only grant a leave of absence during term time where there are exceptional circumstances. Each request will be considered individually.
Taking unauthorised leave during term time may result in a Penalty Notice where the national threshold is met.
For further information about Penalty Notices, please visit the Suffolk County Council school attendance and penalty notices information.
