Regular attendance is essential for the continuity of your child’s education. Taking days away from school unnecessarily, or taking family holidays in term time, will make it very difficult for your child’s continuing understanding of the curriculum and has an equally adverse effect on their social integration.
Illness and Medical Absence
Obviously absences such as sickness and medical appointments are unavoidable. If your child is too unwell to attend school, please telephone the school office on the first day of their absence, with the reason for their absence.
It is helpful if medical appointments can be arranged outside of school hours. If, however, appointments in school hours are unavoidable, please let your child’s class teacher know when you expect to collect and return your child. Children must be collected from the school office and signed in or out.
Lateness
Lateness is as disruptive to a child’s education as absence. Children arriving after 8.50am will be marked as late in the register and this data forms part of their school record and is reported to you at the end of the year. Children arriving after 9.00am will be recorded as absent and must be signed in by an adult at the school office. Under DfE guidance, lateness after 9.00am without good reason is regarded as an unauthorised absence. This is because being persistently late will often mean that your children regularly misses the same subject lesson.
Application for Leave of Absence
At Girton Glebe, we believe that regular attendance at school is essential to enable children to make progress. As a result of the inevitable disruption caused to learning if holidays are taken during term time, and in line with Local Authority guidance, we do not authorise holidays in term time. Absences are authorised for illness, medical/dental appointments, & days of religious observance. Absence without permission will be recorded as unauthorised absence; prolonged or regular unauthorised absence is reported to the Education Welfare Service.
Education Welfare Officers act on behalf of Cambridgeshire County Council, which has a legal responsibility to monitor school attendance. These officers may write to you or visit you if your child is experiencing attendance difficulties. Should you wish to speak to the school’s Education Welfare officer, please contact the school office.
Absence may be granted, at the discretion of the headteacher, in very exceptional circumstances. The Headteacher will determine the number of school days a child can be away from school if the leave is granted. If leave of absence for exceptional circumstances has been denied and you take your child out of school, you may be subject to a Penalty Notice or face prosecution in court.
