Attendance
ATTENDANCE MATTERS AT GRAMPIAN
Regular school attendance is an important part of giving children the best possible start in life. Students who miss school frequently can fall behind with their work and do less well academically. School allows children to participate in many social situations that are vital for understanding the world around them. Socialising with peers helps them understand social cues, social etiquette, and how to express their thoughts and feelings. Good attendance also shows potential employers that a young person is reliable.
Good attendance is 95% or above.
Between 94% and 91%, your child is at risk of being persistently absent.
Below 90%, your child is classed by the DfE as being persistently absent.
WHAT WE ASK FROM YOU……
Attendance and punctuality are essential to unlocking positive futures. Our attendance team work incredibly hard on this. As well as ensuring every minute of learning time counts, it is essential that registers are accurate for safeguarding. Please ensure you are aware of the school timings.
- 08:30am - Breakfast club begins
- 08:45am - Classroom doors open - a member of the leadership team will be available for any questions.
- 09:00am - Classroom doors and the playgrounds gates close.
- 09:00am - Registers are completed at 09:00am.
- 09:00am onwards - late arrivals must enter school through the front gate and reception where a late slip will be completed.
Our gates close at 9am and after this time, your child will be marked as late.
If your child arrives at school after 9:30 they will not get a mark in the register, and it will be an unauthorised absence.
It is essential that medical appointments are made outside of the school day. If this is absolutely not possible, try to arrange them for after the afternoon registers have been taken at 1:30pm. Please provide evidence of these appointments at the school office so that we can authorise the absence.
If your child is a little under the weather, send them in! Often distraction is the best method. We can administer Calpol and other medicines and if they are too poorly to remain at school, then we would call you to collect them.
We also have a robust safeguarding and attendance strategy in place for children absent from school. We call it the '5 day plan'. To view the school procedures, please view the attendance 5 day plan below.
TERM TIME HOLIDAYS
Unfortunately, since the law changed in 2013, we have been unable to authorise term-time holidays. As a result, a request for leave of absence will not be granted for the purpose of a holiday unless deemed to be 'exceptional circumstances’. See our school policy.
Term-time holidays will receive a fine from the Local Authority. Please be aware non-payment of these fines will result in legal action where the cost of the fine increases significantly.
If you require any time off within a term, please complete a holiday request form as soon as you can. Any exceptional circumstances must be clearly set out in the written request to the Head Teacher who will consider each case.
FINALLY….
We are here to help, so if you are struggling to get your child to school for whatever reason, then please reach out to us and we will try our very best to support you.
