Attendance
Why Attendance is important:
At Huntingtower Primary Academy, we believe attending school regularly is important to your child’s achievement, wellbeing, and wider development. Evidence shows that the students with the highest attendance throughout their time in school gain the best GCSE and A Level results. (Education Hub - here)
The link between attendance and attainment is clear:
• In 2018/19, just 40% of persistently absent (PA) children in KS2 achieved expected KS2 standards, compared with 84% of pupils who were regular attenders.
Attendance policy link here
Attendance Expectations:
Regular school attendance is an important part of giving children the best possible start in life. The aim should be to attend 100% of the time.
Students who miss school frequently can fall behind with their work and do less well in exams.
School attendance:
|
Attendance percentage |
Boundary |
|
95 to 100% |
As expected |
|
91 to 94% |
At risk of persistent absence |
|
80 to 90% |
Persistent absence |
|
51 to 79% |
At risk of severe absence |
|
Less than or equal to 50% |
Severe absence |
LCC Attendance Strategy here
If you have concerns or need support with your child’s attendance, please contact the academy as soon as you can to ensure early support is available.
Mrs Ward is our attendance lead and there to support families. If you wish to speak to Mrs Ward, in the first instance, please email huntingtowerenquiries@prioryacademies.co.uk
Punctuality:
It is also important to arrive at school on time. If a child arrives late for school every day, their learning begins to suffer. Below is a graph showing how being late for school every day over a school year adds up to lost learning time over one academic year. The Academy day begins at 8.50 am with the registers closing at 9.00 am.
Absence Processes:
The Academy has clear processes to manage absence. These can be found here
Term Time Holiday and Requesting a Leave of Absence:
Term-time holiday will not be authorised and could result in a fixed penalty fine. Only exceptional circumstances warrant a leave of absence. Academies will consider each application individually, taking into account the specific facts and circumstances and relevant background context behind the request.
A LOA request form can be found here
What can parents/carers do to support their child?
- Support their learning.
- Talk positively about school and let your child know you're there to support their learning at home,
- Support them at exam time,
- Attend parents' evenings
As much as you can:
- Go along to other school events.
- Develop their resilience – is your child really too ill to attend school?