Striving for Excellence: Rules for School Attendance
Having the best attendance possible underpins the many benefits of school for your child, such as their learning, wellbeing and wider development, and at Hemlington Hall, we promote this from Nursery all the way through to Year 6.
Every school day is packed with new learning, reinforcing skills, knowledge and socialising with friends, so even one missing day can set a child behind or leave a learning gap.
For some children, attending school every day will be harder than for others. This is why the DfE, schools, and local councils, are committed to working together with families to solve problems and support GOOD school attendance. This information should answer questions regarding statutory and HHA guidance.
Parents’ responsibilities – What are my responsibilities for my child’s attendance?
Parent / Carers are legally responsible for making sure your child gets a suitable fulltime education, usually from the age of 5 to 16.
For most parents, this will mean making sure your child is in school on time, every day except when:
- Your child is too ill to go to school
- You have permission for a leave of absence from your child’s school for them not to attend due to exceptional circumstances
- Your religious body has a day especially for religious observance
- Your local council is responsible for arranging your child’s transport to school and it is not available on that day or has not been provided yet
What do I do if my child is genuinely unwell?
Parent / Carers should contact school on 01642 591171 before 8.30am on the first day of absence to explain reason for absence. If you do not, school will contact you to find out why your child is not in school.
If your child is too ill to attend school, in most cases medical evidence is not needed, but schools may ask you for evidence where:
- Your child is regularly absent because of illness, to assess how they can help your child by putting the right support in place.
- In a small number of cases where they have reason to believe your child was not too ill to attend and a conversation cannot resolve the issue.
What should I do if my child needs an appointment in school time?
To avoid disruption to your child’s learning, medical / dental appointments should not be booked during the school day whenever reasonably possible. When they are, you should ask the school in advance for a leave of absence and collect your child from school as close to the time of the appointment as possible and return them to school for the rest of the school day afterwards.
EVIDENCE WILL NEED TO BE PROVIDED FOR MONDAY MORNING and FRIDAY AFTERNOON APPOINTMENTS
Fines and ‘improvement notices’
Absence fines have risen from £60 to £80, or £160 if not paid within 21 days. Fines charged are issued per parent, per child (e.g. so if 2 parents take 2 children out of school, they will be charged £320). Schools are duty bound to inform the LA of absence and councils administer the fines. From Autumn 2024, only two fines can be issued to the same parent for the same child within a three-year rolling period. Any second notice will automatically be charged at £160.
School will send “notices to improve” which acts as a “final opportunity for a parent to engage in support and improve attendance before a penalty notice is issued”.
National fine thresholds
From September 2024, schools can consider a fine if a pupil misses 10 sessions (half days) of unauthorised absence in a rolling period of 10 school weeks. They should “not have a blanket position of issuing or not issuing penalty notices”.
The threshold can be met with “any combination of unauthorised absence”. For example, four sessions in term time plus six instances of arriving late after registration. The period of 10 weeks can also span “different terms or school years”.
Councils “retain the discretion to issue one before the threshold is met”. This could include parents “deliberately avoiding the national threshold by taking several term time holidays below threshold, or for repeated absence for birthdays or other family events”.
Penalty Funds & usage
Penalty notices are “not a money-making scheme and Local Authorities do not have income targets”. Any revenues “must be ringfenced for attendance”, guidance says. Councils can use any surplus on “attendance support” directly to schools / targeted families.
Data sharing
From Sept 2024, Hemlington Hall shares daily attendance data with Government through an electronic management information system, which DfE can access and allows an automated flow of data.
When can absence be authorised?
Parents need permission from the HT to take a child out of school, or on holiday, during school term time. Permission can only be granted in certain exceptionally limited circumstances.
Two principle conditions determine whether the school will consider granting permission:
- When the parent makes an application to HT in advance stating the exceptional circumstances of the request. It should be someone that the child usually lives with.
- When there are exceptional or unforeseen circumstances.
Note: Taking a child on holiday in term time without advance permission from the school can result in a fine.
Long-term sickness absence
Schools must give the LA the name and address of sick pupils who they believe will miss 15 consecutive or cumulative days.
Schools are also “expected to inform a pupil’s social worker and/or youth offending team worker if there are unexplained absences from school”.
Medical, Social, Emotional and Learning Needs
Schools are mindful of pupils absent from school due to mental or physical ill health or their special educational needs and/or disabilities and will try to provide them with additional support.
Many children experience normal but difficult emotions that make them nervous about attending school, such as worries about friendships, schoolwork, examinations or variable moods, but it is “important to note that these pupils are still expected to attend school regularly” and doing so “may serve to help with the underlying issue”.
If you would like to discuss any of the information raised within this document, please contact the school office on 01642 591171 and make an appointment to speak to the Class Teacher or Mrs Osborne in the first instance. We are here to help, and we want to get the best for your child – a school day missed makes it difficult to catch up 😊
Hemlington Hall Academy Attendance Policy
Lingfield Trust Attendance Policy
Working Together to Improve School Attendance: Information for Parents from DfE Guidance August 2024
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