Attendance:

This is the link to our Attendance policy 

In line with National Guidance on attendance, The Promise School believes that attendance at school is vital in maximising a child’s success at school and future life chances. Our school will therefore endeavour to ensure that all children receive a full-time education which maximises their opportunity to realise their full potential.  

Every half-day absence from school has to be classified by the school as either AUTHORISED or UNAUTHORISED.  

Authorised absences are mornings or afternoons away from school for a good reason like illness, medical/dental appointments which unavoidably fall in school time, emergencies or other unavoidable cause.  

Unauthorised absences are those, which the school does not consider reasonable and for which no special “leave” has been given. This includes:  

• parents/carers keeping children off school unnecessarily  

• truancy before or during the school day  

• absences which have never been properly explained  

• children who arrive at school too late to get a mark  

• shopping, looking after other children or birthdays  

• day trips and holidays in term time which have not been agreed.  

At The Promise School, staff will work closely with families to ensure that children attend school and arrive punctually. Parents have a legal duty to ensure that their child attends the school to which they are registered.  

In order to ensure efficient communication and record keeping, the following procedures will be followed:  

• Notice is given by parents in advance of known absences, for example medical appointments and they should try to support attendance at school on the day of the medical appointment whenever possible.  

• In the case of a child’s illness, school should be contacted as early as possible (8:30am) by parents to notify staff. A note is taken of the child’s absence and reason for it.  

• Requests by parents for taking children out of school for family holidays MUST be made on the official request form and submitted to the Principal. Families are discouraged from taking children out of school for the purposes of a holiday and permission is given only at the discretion of the Principal.  

• A register of attendance is taken every morning at the start of the day. A note is made of a pupil’s absence and the reason for it, if known. Where the reason for lateness or absence is unknown, a phone call will be made as soon as possible to the parents to ascertain when the child will be arriving or returning to school, and the reason for lateness.  

Whilst any child may be off school because they are ill, sometimes they can be reluctant to attend school for a variety of reasons. If a child is reluctant to attend parents/carers will be asked to please speak directly to a member of the staff team so that The Promise School can take steps to resolve the problem as quickly as possible and support the child accordingly.  

In the case of an unauthorised absence, the school is required to inform the local authority and make them aware of the details. Parents should be aware that unauthorised absence may place their child’s placement at risk and could lead to the placing authority taking legal action against them.  

On occasions, children may have a prolonged period of absence due to illness or surgery. In these cases, staff will establish prior to planned surgery, when and how the pupil will return to school, working with the parents/carers and other agencies as required.  

In all cases of prolonged absence (over a week), staff will visit the child in hospital and/or at home to monitor progress and provide educational and therapeutic input as appropriate.  

If staff have any concerns about a child’s frequent or persistent absence from school, the Safeguarding Team will be contacted.  

Dartmoor Multi-Academy Trust Attendance Guidance for parents/carers/families 

The Trust have recently updated attendance procedures across Dartmoor Multi-Academy Trust. The link between a child’s attendance at school and improved outcomes and life chances is well documented. We want to help all children and young people to fulfil their potential and get the most out of their education. 

In line with our policy and government expectations all schools have the following procedures: 

• If a child’s attendance starts to drop the school will speak to the child/parent and discuss the reason for absence and any support needed.  

• After 10 sessions of absence, you will receive a first attendance letter (there are 2 sessions in the school day, one in the morning and one in the afternoon). 

• After 15 sessions of absence, you will receive a second attendance letter and you will be invited to have a meeting to discuss how we can best support your child to attend school more often. You will also be offered an Early Help meeting.  

• If your child’s attendance does not improve you will receive a third attendance letter and the Education Welfare Officer (EWO) will be informed. 

Of course, there will be unavoidable absences for illness or medical appointments, but we want to minimise these where possible. Pupils and families will not be penalised for legitimate non-attendance due to Covid 19. 

No term time holidays will be authorised unless there are exceptional circumstances.  

Every day in school counts, even a small drop in attendance can lead to a child missing a significant part of their education. 

Please do not hesitate to get in touch with school at any time if you have any queries around attendance expectations and procedures.