Attendance
At Wallscourt Farm Academy, we want and expect our learners to attend school every day, unless they are really not well enough to, or there is another very good reason for their absence which is agreed by the academy.
We believe children who attend regularly are more likely to feel settled in school, maintain friendships, keep up with their learning and gain the greatest benefit from their education.
Attending on time every day also helps pupils form good habits which can stay with them throughout their education and on into the workplace.
Support for your child in school
Please remember we are here to help in any way we can. If you have any concerns about your child that you wish to discuss with us, please do get in touch.
You can contact us by phoning the Welcome Zone on 0117 370 9860 or emailing [email protected] and asking to speak to our Family Support Worker or our Attendance Lead.
Arriving at school on time
Arriving at school on time is not only essential for your child’s own learning, it encourages habits of good timekeeping and lessens any classroom disruption. Late arrival means your child risks missing important information which can seriously disadvantage them.
The school gates open at 8.30am and learners are encouraged to arrive from this time. We also run our own high quality breakfast club which runs daily, in term time, from 7.45am until the start of the school day.
- All pupils are expected to arrive at school in good time for the start of the school day at 8.45am.
- If a pupil arrives after 8.45am, they will be marked in the register as late.
Staff may ask to meet with parents/carers of pupils who regularly arrive late to discuss reasons for lateness and explore solutions.
Illness
Learners should attend school on every day the school is open, unless they are really not well enough.
Minor ailments should not be a reason for staying at home. If your child attends school when feeling slightly under the weather, do let a member of staff know and we will monitor them and contact you if we think they need to go home. If you aren’t sure whether or not to send your child to school, please contact us by phoning the Welcome Zone on 0117 370 9860 and we will be happy to talk this through with you.
If your child is too ill to attend, you must notify the academy before 9am on the first day of absence. If your child is ill for more than one day, you will need to notify the academy on each morning of the absence, unless otherwise agreed.
To report an absence, please call the Welcome Zone on 0117 370 9860. If for any reason you are unable to speak to a member of the Welcome Zone Team, please leave a message on the absence line answerphone or email [email protected]. As soon as a member of the team becomes available, they will call you to discuss your child’s absence.
Please clearly explain the symptoms your child has, when the symptoms started, and when you expect your child to be well enough to return to school.
By law, schools must record all pupil absences and whether the absence is authorised or unauthorised.
Medical and dental appointments
Please try to avoid medical and dental appointments in school time. If this is unavoidable, arrange appointments so the minimum school time is lost. Unless it is an emergency appointment, parents/carers are expected to let the academy know about the appointment in advance, with evidence of the appointment. Your child should still attend school for as much of the school day as possible.
Absence follow up
The academy will follow up any pupil absences where the parent/carer has not contacted us to explain why, or where we are unclear about the reason for absence.
If you fail to notify us of the reason for your child’s absence, it will be recorded as unauthorised.
Where the academy has cause for concern about the actual reason for a pupil’s absence, staff may seek more information or evidence from parents/carers, and/or make a home visit to check the reason.
Unauthorised absences may result in a penalty notice or prosecution.
Important reminder about term time leave
Attending school every day helps children and young people maximise their learning and enjoy the benefits of their education. It really does make a difference.
For that reason, the academy will not authorise any leave of absence in term time, unless satisfied the reason is exceptional.
We ask families to request permission in advance, and only if absolutely necessary. Any requests should be put in writing via the appropriate form (Leave of absence request form available from the Welcome Zone) and wherever possible with at least four school weeks’ notice. The parent or carer who the child normally lives with should make the application.
We also ask families not to make plans without discussing with the academy first, so that we can make good decisions together.
Family emergencies also need careful consideration. It may not always be appropriate, or in the best interests of the child, to miss school for emergencies which are being dealt with by adult family members. Wherever possible, please try to make alternative arrangements for your child so they can still attend school.
It is really important that we know where children are, as we have a duty to ensure they are safe. If we don’t know why a child is absent, we will follow our safeguarding procedures.
Families are reminded that unauthorised term time leave may result in a penalty notice or prosecution.
To assist parents/carers in booking holidays and arranging other events, our term dates and inset days can be found here https://wallscourtfarmacademy.clf.uk/our-academy/term-dates/
Legal action for unauthorised absence – including penalty notices
The government has made some changes to the penalty notices for unauthorised absence rules, which come into effect from 19 August 2024, in time for the new school year.
From 19 August, if a child has at least 10 sessions of unauthorised absence in 10 school weeks, their parent/s may receive a penalty notice. (A morning or afternoon is one session; a whole school day is two sessions.) However, the government’s rules also allow for penalty notices to be issued for less unauthorised absence, in some circumstances, for example where parents appear to be avoiding the national threshold by taking several term time holidays below threshold, or for repeated absence for birthdays or other family events which the school has not authorised absence for.
Penalty notices are issued to each parent/carer with responsibility for the child and are issued for each child with unauthorised absence. For example, if two siblings have unauthorised absence, and there are two parents/carers with responsibility for the children, four penalty notices would be issued.
Please note: Penalty notices are issued to parents and carers as an alternative to prosecution and are intended to prevent the need for court action. A penalty notice may not be issued if prosecution is considered a more appropriate sanction for a pupil’s unauthorised absence.
The table below provides more information about penalty notices and other legal action for unauthorised absence.
| Penalty notices for unauthorised absence | |
| Penalty notices are issued to parents as an alternative to prosecution and are intended to prevent the need for court action. If a pupil has frequent unauthorised absence, and/or an extended period of unauthorised absence, a prosecution may be considered, instead of a penalty notice. Penalty notices cannot be paid in instalments. | |
| Sanction | Outcome |
| First penalty notice (in a 3-year rolling period) | The penalty is £80 (per parent/carer, per child) payable within 21 days, rising to £160 if paid between 22 and 28 days. (If the fine is not paid, the parent/carer may be prosecuted for the child’s unauthorised absence.) |
| Second penalty notice (in a 3-year rolling period) | The second time a penalty notice is issued to the same parent for the same child the amount will be £160 per parent, per child (if paid within 28 days). There is no reduction in the amount if the penalty is paid early. (Again, if the fine is not paid, the parent/carer may be prosecuted.) |
| Prosecutions for unauthorised absence | |
| Local authorities (LAs) are unable to issue more than two penalty notices to the same parent for the same child, in a rolling 3-year period. Should a third offence of unauthorised absence for the same child be committed during the 3 years (including where a child has moved school and fines have been issued by other LAs), the LA may prosecute the parent/carer(s). As penalty notices are an alternative to prosecution, the LA may decide to proceed straight to prosecution instead of issuing any penalty notice. If prosecuting, it is for the LA to decide whether a section 444(1) or section 444(1A) prosecution is most appropriate. | |
| Sanction | Outcome |
| Prosecution under section 444(1) of the Education Act 1996 | If found guilty, parents/carers may be fined up to £1000 and ordered to pay court costs. The court may also impose a Parenting Order. |
| Prosecution under section 444(1A) of the Education Act 1996 | If found guilty, parents/carers may be fined up to £2500 and ordered to pay court costs. Other court outcomes include community sentences, such as Curfew Orders, Unpaid Work (Community Payback) or a prison sentence of up to three months. The court may also impose a Parenting Order. |
| Education Supervision Orders (ESO) | |
| The local authority must consider applying for an ESO (under section 36 of the Children Act 1989) before prosecuting under s444 Education Act 1996. An LA may apply for an ESO instead of, or as well as, proceeding with a prosecution. The order is placed on the child, and a supervisor from the LA is appointed by the court, to give directions to the child and their parents with a view to securing that the child is properly educated. Parents can be prosecuted if they persistently fail to comply with a direction; if found guilty they may be fined up to £1000. | |
Senior Attendance Champion
The Department for Education expects every school to have a Senior Attendance Champion who is responsible for leading on attendance matters across the school and liaising with pupils, parents and organisations outside the school, where needed.
Our academy’s Senior Attendance Champion is Helen Rea, Assistant Principal.
Further information
If you have any questions about the information provided, or any other attendance related questions, please phone 0117 370 9860 and ask to speak to a member of the Attendance Team.
