Attendance and Absence

Absence from school must be explained by the parent. This can be done in a number of ways:-

* a telephone call to the school office

* a visit to the school office and speak to a member of staff

The school is obliged to record all absences and their explanations.

If for any reason your child arrives late you should bring them to the office so they can be entered in the ‘late’ book please. This is part of our monitoring of attendance. Any child arriving in school after 9.30am will be marked down as an un-authorised absence.

Missing registration for a medical or dental appointment is an authorised absence, however proof is required by bringing an appointment letter/card to the office. We strongly encourage that appointments are made out of school hours.

Any request for ‘time off/absence’ for any reason must be made by completing an 'Absence Request Form' and handing this into the school office. We DO NOT authorise absence for holidays at St. Francis in line with Government policy. Any parent/carer taking their child out of school for an unnecessary absence runs the risk of receiving a fixed penalty notice. This is currently £60 per parent, per child and the fine increases if the fine is not paid on time.

Please read our Absence Policy.

Punctuality

The school will monitor those pupils arriving late or being picked up late. If a child arrives late or is picked up late more than three times in a term a reminder letters will be sent out to parents. If this is repeated, a final warning letter will be sent out and a meeting will be organised with the Head of School. If this persists the Education Welfare Officer will be called in to support and if it is the end of the school day, Social Care may be contacted to pick up your child/ren.

Thank you for your continued support and your understanding that my job as Executive Headteacher is to ensure that children are in school to receive the education they are entitled to.