New attendance guidance

You may be aware that the Department for Education has recently announced national changes to penalty notices issued for unauthorised absence in term time. These changes came into effect on 19 August 2024.
The changes to be aware of are:

• Penalty notices issued for offences that take place after 19 August 2024 will be charged at a new rate of £160 per parent per child. This can be paid at £80 if paid within 21 days.
• Any second penalty notice issued to the same parent for the same child within a rolling 3-year period will be issued at the rate of £160 to be paid within 28 days with no option for a discounted rate.
• The threshold at which a penalty notice must be considered is set at 10 sessions (equivalent to 5 days) of unauthorised absence within a rolling 10-school week. This may include absences as a result of arriving late after the register closes. The 10 school weeks may span different terms or school years.
• A maximum of 2 penalty notices may be issued to a parent for the same child within a rolling 3-year period, so at the 3rd (or subsequent) offence(s) another course of action will need to be considered (such as prosecution or one of the other attendance legal interventions).
• Only penalty notices issued for absences taking place after 19 August 2024 will count towards the above thresholds.

Attendance at West Craven High School

This is a successful school and your child plays their part in making it so. We aim for an environment which enables and encourages all members of the community to reach out for excellence. For our children to gain the greatest benefit from their education it is vital that they attend regularly and your child should be at school, on time, everyday the school is open unless the reason for the absence is unavoidable.

Any absence affects the pattern of a child’s schooling and regular absence will seriously affect their learning. Any pupil’s absence disrupts teaching routines so may affect the learning of others in the same class.

Ensuring your child’s regular attendance is your legal responsibility and permitting absence from school without a good reason creates an offence in law and may result in prosecution.

We have a tiered approach of interventions to help improve your child’s attendance if needed. These can be actioned at different stages dependent upon the child’s circumstances.

The minimum level of attendance at WCHS is 96%.

What must I do if my child is ill and will be absent from school?

If your child is absent you must:

As part of our safeguarding, parents/carers must report absence to the school before 9.30 am on every day that a student is absent via the absence line; 01282 812292 option 1 or by emailing attendance@westcraven.co.uk

If the school is not notified of a student absence, parents/carers will then be contacted on the first day of absence by SMS and then phone/email by the Attendance Officer. Miss Toner and /or a Head of Year may also make a Home Visit.

If parents/carers give no reason for absence, then this is an unauthorised absence. 

What must I do if my child has an appointment during the school day?

Medical and dental appointments should be made outside of school hours wherever possible, but we understand that some appointments inside the school day are unavoidable. If this is the case, you should let school know as soon as possible and bring or send proof of the appointment to the school (either the text notification or appointment card/letter).

If a prior arrangement has not been agreed your child will not be allowed to leave the school premises.

What must I do if my child needs to be absent from school due to Religious reasons?

The school will authorise one day ‘leave’ i.e. the day set aside by the Religious Body of which the parent is a member per religious festival, e.g. Eid, but no more than 3 days in any one academic year.

What must I do if my child is late to school?

Poor punctuality is not acceptable. If your child misses the start of the day they can miss work and time with their class teacher. Late arriving pupils also disrupt lessons, which can be embarrassing for the child and can in turn, encourage absence.

Being 10 minutes late everyday throughout the academic year is the same as missing two weeks of school!

The school day starts at 8.45am and we expect your child to be in class at that time.

If your child arrives after this time, a late mark will be issued and logged on class charts, following our Late to School procedure below:

Day 1 – 20-minute detention​

Day 2 – 20-minute detention and call home​

Day 3 – 20-minute detention, formal letter and parents in school​

(This is for 3 instances in the same week)

At 9.30am the registers will be closed. In accordance with regulations, if your child arrives after that time they will receive a mark that shows them to be on site, but this will not count as a present mark and it will mean they have an unauthorised absence. This may mean that you could face the possibility of a Penalty Notice if the problem persists.

If your child has a persistent late record you will be asked to meet with Miss Toner and a member of the SLT Team to resolve the problem, but you can approach us at any time if you are having problems getting your child to school on time.

If your child is late they need to sign in at the Attendance Office.

Leave in Term Time

There is no automatic entitlement in law to time off in school time to go on holiday. It is important that you understand that leave in term time WILL NOT be agreed by us at any time unless circumstances surrounding the request can be evidenced, by parents/carers, to be exceptional.

Any period of leave taken without the agreement of the school, or in excess of the agreed, will be classed as unauthorised and may attract sanctions such as a Penalty Notice.

Parents must request LOA in a letter to the Principal.

The school term and holiday dates for the next two years are available here.

What happens if my child is reluctant to attend school?

Whilst any child may be off school because they are ill, sometimes they can be reluctant to attend school. Any problems with regular attendance are best sorted out between the school, the parents, and the child. If your child is reluctant to attend school it is better to speak to school to resolve the issue, rather than trying to cover up their absences, or give in to pressure to let them stay at home. You and your child may be referred to Miss Toner who can help to resolve the issues that are affecting your child’s attendance.

Parents are expected to contact the school at an early stage and to work with staff in resolving any problems together. This is nearly always successful. School may consider using the following strategies to help support parents in improving their child’s attendance and/or punctuality. This includes: Meetings in school, home visits, Penalty Notices, Parenting contracts, Use of Early Help Assessments (EHA) and/ or referral to outside agencies.

Who is the attendance team and how do I contact them?

Miss J Toner

attendance@westcraven.co.uk

01282 812292 - Option 1