At our school, attendance is very good. Our children want to come to school because they get on well with the others, are inspired to learn and are keen to join in whatever is going on in school today. Our children arrive mainly on foot, some on scooters and bikes, some by car  or horse, but practically all with a smile on their face as they greet the staff at the gate. They and their parents know that good attendance is important for their child as part of our school community – and for their children’s continued learning and good progress. Ideally, children should be in school ever day. Many of our children achieve 100% attendance.

Children need to be in school every day unless ill or there are exceptional circumstances. We expect every child to have a minimum attendance of 97% which means missing no more than 5 school days in the whole year.

We realise that some absence is unavoidable and children should not come to school if they are genuinely too ill to do so.  However, children may attend with minor illness and we strongly urge families not to take holidays in term time.  A few days off may not seem like much, but combined with a few days of illness can soon add up to a concerning amount of time away from school.

Good attendance and punctuality help the children to settle in school and not miss out on vital learning and social experiences. Children with poor attendance can fall behind and catching up can be tricky. It is the parents’ responsibility to ensure that there is good attendance. The Headteacher monitors attendance and will contact parents should they become concerned.

Our statutory school week for pupils consists of 6.5 hours per day and 32.5 hours per week. Doors open at 0845 and school starts at 0900. Registers close at 09.15. After that children will receive a late mark.

School finishes at 1530 for all children each day and parents should wait on the Village Green to collect their child once the teacher has seen the child through the school gate.

If your child is ill, you must call the school office to let them know that your child is ill and what symptoms they have and when you expect them to return.

Appointments for dentists/ opticians/ doctors etc should, wherever possible, be made out of school hours. If this is not possible the child should come to school beforehand and should be returned to school as soon as possible afterwards. Where appointments are booked, parents must inform the office beforehand.

We ensure that our school term dates are published well in advance so that parents can ensure that any holidays are taken during the school holiday, not during the school term. Headteachers can only authorise pupils having time off school in exceptional circumstances, which does not include family holidays. Any request for absence in term time must be applied for on the authorised form ahead of the requested absence. Holidays during term will not be authorised and could result in parental fines.

LINK TO NHS GUIDANCE ON WHETHER YOUR CHILD should be at school or is too ill:

Is my child too ill for school? – NHS