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Millbrook Primary School
‘Learning about caring; caring about learning’
Attendance
If your child if absent from school, please ring and speak to the office or leave a message with a reason as to why your child is absent. If we do not receive a phone call by 9:30am you will receive a phone call from us. If after a day's absence, we still haven't heard from you, we will refer your child to the Education Welfare Officer (EWO) as this is a safeguarding issue. Until we have a confirmation as to why your child is not in school, there will be an unauthorised mark on their register (o). If you do not inform school as to why your child was absent, this can lead to the start of the process for being referred to the Education Welfare Officer (EWO).
We understand routine appointments for the Dentist and Doctor are difficult to arrange, but as much as possible, please try and arrange these appointments during the school holidays. If you do need to take your child for an appointment, please send a copy of the appointment to the school email address (school@millbrookprimary.co.uk) so that we can keep a record and award your child a medical mark 'M' on the register. This is an authorised absence.
Holiday leave can be applied for (please ask the main office for a form) and will be authorised based on your child's % of attendance. If this falls below 95%, the holiday absence will be classed as unauthorised.
Attendance is monitored on a half termly basis in conjunction with our Education Welfare Officer. As part of our commitment to pupil achievement and pupil welfare, we monitor attendance on a regular basis. Our attendance target for all the children is 95%. Every child whose attendance falls into the RED category is discussed and monitored closely.
Each half term, an attendance letter will be sent home to every child notifying you of your child’s percentage of attendance. It will be categorised as below:
If your child’s attendance falls in the RED category and remains there, and/ or if we have an unauthorised absence, a Letter 1 will be sent home. If your child’s attendance does not improve, a Letter 2 will be issued to arrange a meeting with parents, school and the EWO.
We understand that there are occasions when an absence from school cannot be avoided (e.g. genuine illness), however, we are concerned about the impact that this time missed is going to have on your child’s educational outcomes. We know there is a clear link between attendance in primary school and gaining a GCSE in Maths and English. Missed lessons now are making sure that there are gaps in the vital building blocks that your child will need to have their best chances for a successful future.
From September 2022, Fixed Penalty Notices have been allowed to be issued again. If there is a continuous issue with your child's attendance, it could result in a fine being issued. This is a very last resort, and we will always help and support families as much as we can to avoid this happening.
As parents/carers we ask for your support so that we can deal with any issues in partnership and avoid the Educational Welfare department having to consider legal action. As a school we want to see your child achieve their best and this starts with good attendance in school.
Diolch yn fawr iawn for your continued support.