Here at Willoughby Road primary Academy we would like to work closely with you to ensure your child enjoys coming to school and participating in activities with their friends.
Attendance is a high priority for us and we aim to have all children in school all of the time. We understand that children are sometimes ill and will need to stay at home however, we will always work with children, parents and carers to ensure there is every chance of your child attending school every day.
Our Attendance Team at Willoughby Road Primary Academy, monitors attendance of pupils and their punctuality. For a school to be considered to have good attendance we must have at least 97%
Attendance percentages can be misleading. For some parents 90% attendance may seem like an acceptable level, however, the reality is that 90% attendance means that your child will miss half a day of school each week or 19 days of school during the school year. That is nearly four school weeks!
An average attendance of 80% or less across a child’s school career adds up to missing 2 whole years from school. Being late everyday reduces learning time and if your child is 5 minutes late every day they will miss three days of learning each year
Lateness not only affects you child’s education, it doesn’t allow them time to settle with their friends, they may feel upset or embarrassed, and it disrupts the rest of the class.
The register will close at 9:15am and so anyone arriving after this will receive an unauthorised lateness mark.
Holidays and Absences
In September 2013, the government released new legislation preventing Head Teachers from authorising term time holidays other than in exceptional circumstances.
We consider each request individually and cannot approve any leave retrospectively. If you wish to apply for a leave of absence, please contact our office team on 0174 842608. If the school does not authorise a leave of absence and you take your child out of school, or keep your child off longer than was agreed, the absence will be unauthorised and the local authority may issue a penalty notice.
The fine is £60 per parent per child if paid within 21 days, rising to £120 if paid between 21 and 28 days. Non-payment may result in the case being referred for prosecution through the magistrate’s court.
If your child has an appointment in school hours please let the office know so that it can be put in the diary, you will need to provide some supporting evidence for this which could be a letter, text message or email.
If your child is genuinely unwell and unable to attend school, please telephone the school pupil absence line and leave a message. We must have a reason for every time a child is absent from school. If we have not been able to make contact with you we may make a home visit, inform our EWO or inform the police or social services. Some of these measures may seem extreme but it is our duty to ensure the safeguarding of every pupil in our school community.
Please note under Section 444 (1/1A) of the Education Act 1996, it is your parental responsibility to secure your child’s regular school attendance. Failure to do so will result in legal proceeding.
By working together we hope to ensure that your child is able to feel safe and supported and able to achieve their full potential. As a school, we strive for all our pupils to achieve 100% attendance and we ask that you as the parent / carer support this.
Attendance awards
We have a range of new incentives in school so every child has the chance of receiving an award at some point during the school year!
Each half term children who have 100% attendance for the term will receive a 100% attendance certificate and a prize! Prizes range from chocolate and stationary hampers to family supermarket vouchers!
We will be updating our Twitter account at the end of each term to celebrate some of the children who have won prizes. We hope to keep parents fully informed of our school attendance and celebrate the children and class achievements. We are also happy to take ideas and inspiration from parents to support our attendance campaigns.
If you would like to discuss any issues impacting upon your child’s ability to fully access their education, please contact school and speak with Mrs Bedford on 01724 842608 and a meeting can be arranged.
