School Attendance

 

 

School Attendance Policy

Regular and punctual school attendance is important. Pupils need to attend school regularly if they are to take full advantage of the educational opportunities available to them by law. Newlands Primary School fully recognises its responsibilities to ensure pupils are in school and on time, therefore having access to learning for the maximum number of days and hours.

Why it's important for children to attend school?

It's important children attend school because:

  • attendance has a direct link to attainment. If a child is not in school regularly they are not fully accessing the curriculum and learning opportunities available to them
  • achieving at school builds a child’s self-esteem, as well as enhancing their future prospects
  • attending school and being part of the school’s community gives a child a sense of belonging and promotes their social development
  • spending time with school staff teaches a child about society’s expectations with regards to behaviour and how to communicate with people in authority preparing them for adult life
  • attending school gives a child the opportunity to experience positive separation from their parent(s)/carer(s), which builds their confidence and resistance.

Good attendance

Although an exam mark of 90% is very good, when looking at school attendance 90% equates to half a day absence per week. This in turn equates to 4 weeks absence in an academic year. If a child persistently had 90% attendance over the course of their education they would have been absent for a whole year of their education.

The school target for attendance is 95% for the school year.

 

 

Last year the school attendance was only 92.5%.

This is an improvement from the 2022-2023 Academic year of 91% but still not good enough.

What to do if your child will be absent?

 

Reporting Absences

PLEASE report your child's absence BEFORE 8:30 am by ringing 01924 302585.

We also have WHATSAPP and you can leave a message on 07852982323.

You can leave a voice mail at ANY TIME.

 

Home Visits

If a child has been off for a number of days or if you have failed to contact us to let us know your child will be off and the reasons for their absence, the school can complete an home visit to check on the welfare of the child and family.  We always want to see the child and we discuss what support we can offer to support getting your child back in school.

 

How do I help my child who is becoming a School Refuser?

This Wakefield brochue is filled with helpful information and contacts to support you and your child.

Parent/Carer Booklet of Information and Resources from Wakefield

 

Please Talk to Us

Please contact school if there are issues that are impacting on your child's attendance.  We are here to help but we would rather you discuss this with us before it actually impacts on your child's attendance.

 

Penalty Notice Fines have Changed. 

You can read about how the fining process works here:  Penalty Notice Fines