At St Gabriel’s we encourage children to be an…
Attendance H.E.R.O.
(Here Every day Ready On time)
…and achieve a school attendance target of:
95% & above!
This means no more than 9.5 days absent in one full year!
The Department for Education is clear that good attendance is vital for children’s progress and wellbeing. Attendance less than 95% is considered poor and below 90% is seen as a cause for concern.
Persistent Absenteeism and Punctuality
Pupils who miss 19 days in one full school year (10%) are classed by the Government as a persistent absentee. We want to work closely with families when a child’s attendance starts to fall and offer support before they risk becoming a persistent absentee.
We monitor attendance weekly and will contact you promptly if there are any concerns.
All pupils whose attendance drops below 95% will be looked at individually and letters sent out according to the reason why the pupil has been absent.
Whilst occasional lateness is understandable, due to unavoidable circumstances, all parents have a duty to ensure that children arrive on time for school. Children who frequently arrive late often feel self-conscious and embarrassed, which can impact their wellbeing and readiness to learn for the remainder of the day.
School will monitor attendance and punctuality and, where necessary, meet with parents to discuss ways to tackle persistent absence and lateness.
School attendance contracts are drawn up with families who fail to make any attendance or punctuality improvements for their child/ren – this is after initial letters, meetings and other reviews have been unsuccessful.
A note on illness: We know that sometimes children cannot come to school because they are really unwell – and that’s the right thing to do for them and 
everyone else in school. Medical advice is clear, however, that children with mild illness will often be well enough to attend – for example if they have a cough or cold, but no temperature.
We are required to inform the local authority when any child accumulates a total of 15 days absence due to illness. This is now a national requirement for all schools.
Understanding types of absence:
Authorised absences are mornings or afternoons away from school for a good reason such as illness, medical appointments and emergencies.
An absence is classified as Unauthorised, if the reason is not acceptable, for example:
- Late arrival after 9.30am, without an acceptable reason
- A birthday
- A shopping trip/day trips
- Brother or sister is ill so all children in the family stay off school
- Not having uniform ready to wear or can’t find shoes/coat etc
- Getting up late
- Holidays – unless previously agreed as exceptional circumstances (see our Absence During Term Time Policy for further information).
Five full days or 10 am/pm sessions (which include late arrivals after 9.30am) may result in a penalty notice fine.
What to do if your child is going to be absent:
If your child has a medical appointment or is considered too ill to attend school you must:
- Call the school office (01254 249462) before 9.00am on the day of absence and each subsequent day of absence informing us of the reason and likely return date.
- If you call before 8.30am please leave a message on the voicemail service, clearly stating your child’s name, class, reason for absence and likely return date.
If you do not inform us, we are required to chase you as a matter of urgency…
- firstly by phone (both parents)
- then by text
- then we’ll call your given third contact
- then by email
… so please just let us know before we need to ask!
Please note:
- for sickness and diarrhoea, there is always a 48 hour exclusion period – from the last bout of illness. This is a Public Health requirement, to reduce transmission.
- please make medical appointments outside of school time and provide evidence from the doctor, dentist, hospital etc, whenever possible.
If you experience issues that may impact your child’s absence or punctuality, please speak to us… it is always our aim to work with parents and support families in any way we can.
Fixed Penalty Notice fines for unauthorised absence from school
When can fines be used?
Fines can be issued when a child has a total of 5 days or 10 sessions of unauthorised absence in any period of 10 weeks. Each day counts as 2 sessions – morning and afternoon.
Does unauthorised absence just mean a holiday?
No! It can also include odd days of unauthorised absence in any period of 10 weeks – it doesn’t have to be consecutive days. It can also include late arrival after 9.30am (when the register closes). The 10 weeks can also span different terms and academic years.
How much is the fine?
It depends…
For the first time a penalty notice is issued, the fine is £160 per parent, per child. But if you pay it promptly it reduces to £80.
For the second time, within 3 years, then there’s NO reduction for paying quickly. The fine will be £160 per parent, per child.
For the third time, within 3 years, a fine will not be issued. Instead, the case will be taken to the Magistrates’ Court. Fines can then be up to £2,500 per parent, per child. This is intended to stop parents routinely choosing to pay fines each year for annual holidays/extended leave.
