Absence

We are proud of our pupils’ attendance at Edenfield Primary School and children are seldom absent from school.  Our current attendance target is 96%.

If your child cannot attend school, please ensure that you contact the school office before 9.30am on the day they are absent. If the office does not receive an explanation from a parent or class teacher as to the reason for absence, a text will be sent and a follow up telephone call will be made to enquire about a pupil’s absence.

Please see below for further information regarding attendance procedures:

Registration
Registration takes place at 8.50 a.m. and 1.15 p.m. Children will be marked late if they arrive once the gates have been locked or the register has been taken.

Requests for Leave in Term Time
For a child to receive his/her full potential the staff and governors of Edenfield C.E. Primary School expect the support of all parents/carers in ensuring their child’s attendance at school.

Leave will only be granted in term-time if there are exceptional circumstances. Absences taken without authorisation will be classed as unauthorised.  Please complete a Term time Leave Request Form if you wish to apply for leave for your child.  This must be received in school at least 2 weeks before the intended leave date.

Traffic Light System

Traffic Light System At Edenfield School, we have a termly ‘Traffic Light’ system as a way to ‘grade’ attendance at school. At the end of each term, we send out attendance reports to inform you of your child’s attendance level and to highlight areas of concern.

The minimum attendance level which is expected for all primary aged children nationally is 95%. The target for Edenfield C E Primary school is 96% and we consistently achieve or exceed this target. Good attendance is very important so that children are given as much opportunity as possible to develop academically and socially. When children are absent from school they often find it difficult to catch up on the work they have missed and can feel unsettled by this.

At the end of each term:

· If your child receives a gold measure report, then this means that your child has achieved 100% attendance, which is above Government expectations and will help us, as a school, reach our target. Thank you and well done!

· If your child receives a silver measure report, then your child has achieved 98% or above attendance which is above Government expectations and will help us, as a school, reach our target. Thank you and well done!

· If your child receives a green measure report then this means that your child has attendance which is on or above the minimum level recommended by the Government, 95%.

· If you receive a yellow measure report, this means that, whilst your child’s attendance is not yet ‘concerning’, they have attendance of below 95% but above 85% and have therefore had an above average amount of time off school so far this term. It may be that these absences have been due to illness or an authorised holiday, but we feel you should be aware that your child’s attendance is below the minimum level recommended and so does need to improve.

· If your child receives a red measure report, this means that they have had significant periods of time off school this year (below 85%) and are at risk of underachieving as a result. We would ask for your support in ensuring that, where possible, attendance improves over the coming weeks. Your child’s attendance is now being monitored on a regular basis and we may invite you into school to discuss this further.

If, following a red report, your child’s attendance does not improve, we will contact you again in order to discuss the situation further and may require you to attend a meeting in school. It may also be necessary to ask the Local Authority Attendance Officer for assistance in this matter. We are asking for the support of all parents in improving attendance levels, as we believe that this is one of the main ways in which our children will be happy at school and achieve their full potential.