Attendance
At All Saints Catholic College believe that regular school attendance is the key to enabling children to maximise the educational opportunities available to them and become emotionally resilient, confident and competent adults who can realise their full potential and make a positive contribution to their community.
Our attendance team:
All Saints Attendance Team
Ms Norton
Educational Welfare Officer (EWO)
Ms Mitchell
Attendacne Officer
Ms Fox
Assistant Headteacher
Safeguarding and Attendance
We have high expectations for all our pupils regarding school attendance and attainment. The whole school attendance target is 97% plus, which is the minimum each individual student should aim to achieve. The Department for Education classifies any pupil with less than 90% attendance as ‘persistently absent’.
| Attendance | Days Absent | Weeks Absent | Lessons Missed |
|---|---|---|---|
| 97% | 4.5 Days | 1 Week | 24 Lessons |
| 95% | 9 Days | 2 Weeks | 50 Lessons |
| 90% | 19 Days | 4 Weeks | 100 Lessons |
| 85% | 29 Days | 6 Weeks | 150 Lessons |
| 80% | 38 Days | 8 Weeks | 200 Lessons |
| 75% | 48 Days | 10 Weeks | 250 Lessons |
| 70% | 57 Days | 11.5 Weeks | 290 Lessons |
| 65% | 67 Days | 13.5 Weeks | 340 Lessons |
As a school it is our duty to reduce the number of pupils whose attendance is 90% and below. Your child’s attendance to school can have an overall impact on their learning and attainment. We will build strong relationships with families to ensure pupils have the support in place to attend school and identify the reasons for poor attendance helping pupils to reach their full potential.
Attendance is closely monitored by our attendance team Miss Fox, Mrs Norton and Mrs Mitchell. All pupils are monitored using our traffic light system helping us to ensure that all pupils receive the right help and support. Attendance is a key focus of our form time plan to help pupils understand the importance of attending school on a regular basis.
As a school we have adopted an attendance mentor programme to provide relevant interventions in a timely manner. Our mentors work with the pupils and families to help improve attendance to support their personal development and attainment. Mentors work with the pupils on a 1:1 basis and in small groups to help identify barriers to attendance and put support plans in place. Our mentors celebrate and recognise the pupil’s success using our school’s rewards system.
Responsibilities of Parents
Where parents decide to have their child registered at school, they have an additional legal duty to ensure their child attends that school regularly. This means their child must attend every day that the school is open, except in a small number of allowable circumstances such as being too ill to attend or being given permission for an absence in advance from the school. If a child does not attend regularly, parents should work closely with the school.
Reporting an absence
If your child is ill or has a very good reason to be absent from school, you MUST contact school before 8:30am on 0161 338 2120
Please leave a message if indicated to do so, or email: attendance@allsaintscatholiccollege.com
Routine dental/medical appointments MUST be made after school or during the school holidays.
Absences from school
Particular emphasis is placed on reducing unauthorised absence incurred through holidays/leave of absence during term time or general unexplained absence.
Unauthorised absence is when pupils are absent from school without the authority of the Headteacher. The following is a list of some of the reasons where absence from the school cannot be authorised:
- Birthdays/Family Celebration
- Day Trip
- Leave in term time for a holiday that has not been authorised
- Shopping or visit to the hairdresser
- Over-sleeping
- Taking a long week-end
- Taking the rest of the day off, before or after a dental or medial appointment
Unauthorised absence may lead to legal action and in certain circumstances the removal of the pupil from the school register.
Holidays in term time
Parents are not allowed to keep their children off school for any reasons such as holidays in term time.
From 1st September 2013 Department for Education legislation gives no entitlement to parents to take their child on holiday during term time. The Head teacher will not grant any leave of absence during term time (unless there are exceptional circumstances).
Parents must ask the Head teacher for permission in advance in writing who will decide whether the absence will be authorised or not and how many days a child can be away from school if the leave is granted. If you need to take your child away from school, your child must request a Leave of Absence Form from the school office. You must use this to seek permission from the Headteacher, at least four weeks in advance of the absence. If you take your child out of school without permission, you may be given a fixed penalty notice.
Penalty notices 14 are fines of £80/£160 imposed on parents. They are an alternative to the prosecution of parents for failing to ensure that their child of compulsory school age regularly attends the school where they are registered or at a place where alternative provision is provided.
Penalty notices can only be issued by a head teacher, or someone authorised by them (a deputy or assistant head), a local authority officer or the police. All schools and the police must send copies of penalties issued to the local authority. Penalty notices can be issued to each parent liable for the attendance offence or offences.
Penalty notices can be used where the pupil’s absence has not been authorised by the school. Penalty notices may also be issued where parents allow their child to be present in a public place during school hours without reasonable justification during the first five days of a fixed period or permanent exclusion.
Punctuality
The school day starts at 8:40am and pupils MUST be in school ready for the bell. All pupils are expected to register at 8:40am. Any pupils arriving after 8:40am will receive a late mark (L); and will also be given a 20-minute lunchtime detention supervise by a Pupils Progress Leader unless they have a valid reason for their lateness. If pupils arrive after 8:40am they must report to reception upon arrival.
The registers will remain open until 9:10am. Any pupil arriving after this time will be marked as having a ‘U’ mark – this is an unauthorised absence unless an explanation given is accepted as grounds for authorising the late arrival. U codes may lead penalty notices.
Please find below important information from the Local Authority that we are required to share with all parents concerning absence from college.
It is for information only and outlines the actions that could be taken against parents/carers re: attendance
Penalty Notices for non-school attendance
Section 444(A) of the Education Act 1996 empowers the local authority to issue Penalty Notices in cases of unauthorised absence from school. This means that when a pupil has unauthorised absence of 10 sessions (5 days) or more, in any term (where no acceptable reason has been given for the absence) or if their child persistently arrives late for school after the close of registration, their parents or carers may receive a Penalty Notice of £80 per parent per pupil if paid within 21 days rising to £160 if paid within 28 days. The penalty notice will need to be paid in full before 28 days of the notice being served. Failure to pay a penalty notice may result in prosecution.
Under existing legislation, parents/carers commit an offence if their child fails to attend school regularly, and the absences are classed as unauthorised. Such cases may result in a prosecution under Section 444 of the Education Act, 1996.
A Penalty Notice is an alternative to prosecution, which does not require an appearance in Court, whilst still securing an improvement in the pupil’s attendance.
A Penalty Notice will be issued by post to your home.
Parents may also receive a Penalty Notice without a warning letter for the offence of failing to secure regular school attendance for the following reasons:
- If their child is stopped on a truancy sweep more than once.
- If they go on holiday in term time without school’s permission or are late returning from an extended holiday.
- If their child fails to return to school following a fixed term exclusion.
The Education and Inspections Act 2006 also makes it an offence if a parent fails to ensure that their child is not in a public place during the first 5 days of a fixed term or permanent exclusion. Penalty Notices may be issued in relation to this matter.
The Local Authority and schools are committed to providing the best possible future for your child. If you have concerns about your child’s attendance at school or if you are experiencing any difficulties, contact school and ask for help.
Support is also available from the Education Welfare Service on telephone number 0161 342 2112.