Attendance - Miss School, Miss Out!
We believe that regular school attendance is essential to student success. Attending school every day provides students with the opportunity to engage in learning, build strong relationships and develop the habits necessary for lifelong success.
We are committed to working in partnership, with families, to ensure that every student attends school regularly and on time. When students are present, they are better able to reach their full academic and personal potential.
An attendance record of 90% might seem impressive, when in fact it is equal to one day missed per fortnight. If this continues from Years 7 to 11, a total of six months of education will be lost.
An attendance record of 80% might seem acceptable but is equal to one day missed per week. If this continues from Years 7 to 11, a total of one year of education will be lost.
Why is good attendance so important?
Academic Achievement: Regular attendance directly correlates with academic success. Students who attend school consistently are more likely to make good progress, achieve good outcomes, and improve their life outcomes. Reflecting on our most recent GCSE outcomes, of those students whose attendance was above 96% last year, 91% of them achieved a Grade 4 or above in both English and Maths. Of the students whose attendance was 90% or below, only 17% of them achieved the same standard.
Knowledge Acquisition: Students acquire knowledge and skills that are crucial for their personal and professional growth; they are denied this opportunity if they do not attend as their learning will be disrupted.
Preventing Knowledge Gaps: Frequent absences can lead to significant knowledge gaps, making it challenging for students to catch up with missed lessons, potentially resulting in long-term academic struggles.
Social Development: School provides a vital social environment for students to interact with peers, develop friendships, and learn essential social skills. Consistent attendance ensures students remain connected to their peer group.
Building Routine: School attendance establishes a structured routine in student’s lives, teaching them time management and responsibility, which are valuable life skills.
Staff/Teacher Interaction: Our school culture and ethos is built upon positive relationships. Regular attendance allows meaningful teacher- student interactions and relationships. Staff will provide personalised support, address questions, and assess individual progress more effectively when students attend regularly.
School Engagement: Students who attend school regularly are more likely to engage in extracurricular activities, sports, and other enriching experiences that contribute to their overall development.
Attendance Procedures
Parents must inform the school of their child’s absence on the first day and each subsequent day of absence, using our online reporting system that can be found here
In turn the school will inform parents of a student’s absence via text as soon as possible, monitor student absence levels, keep parents informed of student attendance levels and recognise, where appropriate, excellent attendance. Please be aware that school staff may request medical evidence from parents/ carers as part of our tracking and monitoring systems.
We work closely with Wolverhampton City Council and are supported by an Educational Welfare Officer (EWO), Mrs Davis. There may be occasions where the school must inform Wolverhampton City Council’s Educational Welfare Service regarding a student’s absence; this may instigate Penalty Notices or legal proceedings.
Attendance Support
We have a dedicated Attendance Team who will offer any support, advice and guidance that you or child needs regarding attendance. Good attendance isn’t just a school responsibility; we must work together. We’re here to support students and families to make sure every child gets the most from their education.
Our Attendance Team offer a range of inclusive, bespoke and child-centred interventions to support students and families. Please reach out if you require support, advice or guidance regarding your child’s attendance.
Raising Attendance Manger - Ms Meese
Year 7 Manager - Mrs Francis
Education Welfare Officer - Ms Cox
Education Welfare Officer - Miss Davis
Year 9 Manager - Miss Lea
Year 8 Manager - Mrs Edwards
Year 11 Manager - Miss Rees
Year 10 Manager - Mr Rowe
Parental Support
Making school attendance a priority will help your child flourish in all areas of school life.
Please do the following to support your child’s attendance:
Talk about school in a positive way
Ensure your child has consistent morning and bedtime routines
Avoid planning holidays/ days out during term time
Communicate with our Attendance Team if you require support
Try to arrange any medical/ personal appointments outside school hours
Frequently Asked Questions
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When a student arrives late to school, they miss essential information given at the beginning of each school day. Furthermore, when students arrive late, it can disrupt the entire class and therefore valuable learning is lost.
Procedure:
• Tutor begins at 8.30am, so students need to arrive at school in enough time to be at their form room on time. Anyone that arrives after that will be deemed as late.
•A late to school email will be sent out to parents so you can update us on why your child is late for school
• If the problem persists, we will invite parents/families to attend a meeting to discuss possible support.10 or more incidents of persistent lateness to school (After registration has closed) within a ten week period can result in a Fixed Penalty Notice Fine.
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Families should try to make appointments outside of school hours wherever possible. Where appointments during school time are unavoidable, we ask that parents notify the school in advance of the appointment wherever possible. The student should only be out of school for the minimum amount of time necessary for the appointment. In most circumstances, a child should not miss a whole day at school for an appointment. No student will be allowed to leave the school site without parental confirmation.
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The Headteacher can only authorise leave of absence in exceptional circumstances. The Headteacher will consider each application individually taking into account the specific facts and circumstances and relevant background context behind the request. All absences associated with a family holiday (without exceptional circumstances) during term time will be marked as unauthorised on the register. Any parents known to have removed their child from school for the sole purpose of a holiday may be referred to the Local Authority by the Attendance Team and be issued with a fixed penalty notice.
If a student fails to return on the expected date and contact is not received from, or made with the parents, school will seek advice from the Local Authority. This could result in a possible child missing from the education procedure being instigated. Click here to complete the form.
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A Penalty Notice is a fixed fine that is issued to parents/ carers via the local council. Penalty Notices are issued if students are persistently absent from school or take unauthorised leave of absence during term time.
Your local council can give each parent a fine of £80, rising to £160 if not paid within 21 days.
From the 2024 to 2025 school year, each parent will only get up to two fines for the same child in a three year period.
If you get a second fine in three years it will be £160. If you do not pay the fine in 28 days you may be taken to court for keeping your child out of school.
If your child is off school three or more times within the three years you will not be fined but may be taken to court. If taken to court by the local council, you could get a fine of up to £2,500, a community order or a jail sentence up to 3 months. The court could also give you a Parenting Order.
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A student becomes a ‘persistent absentee’ (PA) when their attendance drops to 90% and below for any reason. Over a full academic year this would be 40 sessions (20 days). Absence at this level is causing considerable damage to a child’s educational prospects.
The attendance of all students at our school are monitored to identify children who are PA, or are who are becoming a PA. Where emerging concerns are identified we will instigate appropriate and timely interventions to support. Referrals may also be made to external agencies for targeted support.