Reporting and Leave of Absence
Attendance and Punctuality at Coleridge
At Coleridge, we work very hard to help your child learn and achieve well. To do this, we need you to help us in many ways. To most important way to help and support your child is to ensure that he or she attends school and is punctual.
If your child is ill, please can you contact the school office and leave a message with a reason for your child’s absence. If we do not receive a message, we will have to either contact you by phone or conduct a home visit to ensure your child’s welfare.
There are many reasons why we feel so passionately about attendance and why we reward children so frequently for good attendance. Below are some of the reasons:
- Being punctual is a skill that your child will need for life. It shows a respect for others and shows that school is important.
- Good attendance means that your child will be able to get the most out of school and make the most of the opportunities offered to them.
- It will ensure that there are no gaps in their learning. This will means that the important foundations for future learning will be strong.
- There are approximately 175 days of non-school time. Please make every effort to use this time to book holidays and visit friends and family. It is important for your child to be at school so that they can achieve and attain well.
- Children who have a good attendance generally achieve better than those who do not. They are able to make and sustain strong relationships and have a better understanding that school is important.
I hope that you will support us in trying to further improve our attendance. Apart from the points listed above, Ofsted will judge our school on attendance. We feel proud of our school and want you to feel the same.
Leave of Absence
We would like to advise you that schools have received clear instructions from the Government stating the following:
‘Amendments have been made to the 2006 regulations removing references to family holidays and extended leave as well as the statutory threshold of ten school days. The amendments made clear that Headteachers may not grant any leave of absence during term time unless there are exceptional circumstances.’
For further details please follow the following link:
Any request for leave of absence will only be considered if they are based on exceptional circumstances.
Should you need to withdraw your child from school please arrange a meeting with a member of the Leadership Team where we will discuss your request. We will take into account a number of factors: one of which will be your child’s previous attendance. You will then be required to complete the ‘Leave of absence’ request form available from the school office. The school will inform you of their decision.
If the request is refused, school will advise parents that if they still take pupils out of school then they could be liable to receive a penalty notice (£80 per parent, per child).
If you have any further questions, please do not hesitate to contact school.
Thank you for your continued support.
