Attendance & Punctuality

Parents have a legal responsibility to ensure their child is in school every day and arrives on time.

Lateness

We are passionate in our belief that children should arrive on time every day to start school in a calm and settled manner. Lateness is unsettling for your child and disruptive for the class. The children must be brought directly to the office by an adult to give the reason for lateness, get a registration mark and be marked in for a dinner.

Collection at the end of the school day

Prompt collection of your child after school is vital. If you are delayed by an emergency, you must telephone the school so that we can reassure your child. Children in Years 5 and 6 may come to school and leave without being accompanied, if you so wish, but the school must be informed of this arrangement in writing. If you make arrangements for someone else to collect your child, you should let her/his teacher know. Younger children should not be brought to school by their older siblings and will not be allowed to go home alone with them. If a child needs to go home during the school day they must be collected by an adult, regardless of year group.

Absence

If a child is absent, please inform the school by email  on the first day of absence by 9.30 am with a reason for absence. The school may seek clarification of the absence. We consider absences to be authorised if your child is sick, however, absences for reasons such as birthdays or shopping trips will be recorded as unauthorised. If your child has a medical appointment, please provide the school with a copy of the appointment card/letter for our records.

The school keeps a record of absences and these are included in your child's report. Unauthorised absence and persistent lateness is reported to the Local Authority's Attendance and Welfare Officer. If your child has an infectious disease, please let us know as soon as it has been confirmed. Some diseases are notifiable and we must report them to the Health Protection Agency. We will also inform other parents so that they can check for symptoms. After a stomach upset or vomiting, children should be kept at home for 48 hours to avoid a recurrence at school and possibly infecting other children. Likewise, if your child has a raised temperature, they should be kept at home. If you discover your child has headlice, please keep them at home until you have treated them. The school should be notified so that we may inform other parents.

Please click to view the SDBE MAT Guide to Illnesses

Holidays

Parents are not permitted to arrange holidays during term time, as it disrupts your child's learning. Children attend school for only 190 days a year and the rest of the year is available for holidays. In exceptional circumstances the headteacher may authorise a limited absence for attendance at funerals and the like.  If a child is absent for more than 10 days without authorisation the child will be reported to the authorities as being 'missing in education' and the child's name may be removed from the register and their place offered to another child.

Requests for absence during term time

To request permission to take a child out of school during term time please download the Request to Withdraw a Child from Learning Form (see below), complete the relevant sections and hand it in to the school office or send it to the school.