Author: amanda.fisher1

Who to speak to...
The school’s attendance administrator is Jo Mabbott who can be contacted on 01952 388280 or by email at A2158@telford.org.uk. All notifications of absence, evidence of appointments, queries or concerns should be directed to Jo Mabbott, who maintains the school’s attendance registers.
Attendance is managed by the attendance champion (Ruth Angeloff Acting Deputy Head) supported by the pastoral team. Ruth Angeloff can be contacted on 01952 388280 or ruth.angeloff@taw.org.uk .
The school’s Educational Welfare Officer is Toni Bohn. She can be contacted, via email, at Toni.Bohn@telford.gov.uk. The EWO is responsible for the submission of letters, fines, and any legal proceedings relating to absence. She works alongside the Acting Deputy Head and attendance administrator to analyse and monitor attendance.

Requesting Leave of Absence
Absence from school will only be authorised in exceptional circumstances. Family holidays are not exceptional circumstances and it is unlikely that any requests for this purpose will be authorised. Any requests must be made in writing prior to the proposed absence. The school office has a form that must be completed. Reasons must be detailed and evidence may be requested.
You may receive a Fixed Penalty Notice for taking holidays without the Headteacher's permission.

What happens if my child is ill?
Being ill may prevent your child from coming to school, but, if they can get out of bed and play or enjoy TV, they should be in school. Coughs and sneezes are not an excuse to miss school and feeling tired is not an illness. Looking after your child is very important to us and we will of course contact you if we feel they should be at home.
If your child is too ill to attend school, it is really important that you let school know on their first day of absence before 9am and give the reason for their absence. You will need to contact school for every day your child is absent. On occasions, we may ask for additional medical evidence, in order to authorise the absence.
Contact Number: 01952 388280
Barriers to Attending School
We understand that families can experience difficult circumstances at times so please contact us straight away about any issues which are causing a barrier to your child attending school. As with any attendance issue, keeping us in the loop is important. If there are problems, we will do everything that we can to make attending school as simple as possible whilst ensuring your child is happy and reaches their full potential. If there are ever any problems, please do not hesitate to come and speak to us.

Attendance
And Punctuality Information
for
Parents
and Carers

The Importance of Good School
Attendance
Good attendance and punctuality are vital for success at school, and help to establish positive life habits that are necessary for future success.
Through regular attendance, pupils can:
Build friendships and develop social groups;
Develop life skills;
Engage in essential learning and other school social events;
Achieve to their full potential.
You have a responsibility to ensure that your child arrives at school on time. Please remember children need to arrive at school by 8.45am for registration. Lessons begin straight after the register is taken so if your child is late, they will miss out on important learning.
Please remember:
The school gates open at 8:30am and classroom doors open at 8:35am.
Pupils are expected to be in their classrooms at 8:45am every day. If pupils are not in their classrooms by 8:45am, they receive a late mark.
If they arrive after 9:15am, they will receive a U code - this is an unauthorised absence and means that even though your child has arrived at school, their attendance for that session will not be counted.
When your child is late for school, they will be joining a lesson that has already started, meaning they are likely to have missed important teaching and instructions. This can impact upon their confidence over time.

What the Law says...
All children of compulsory school age must receive a suitable full-time education. As a parent, you are responsible for ensuring that this happens, either by registering your child at a school or by making appropriate alternative arrangements.
Once you have registered your child at a school, you are also legally responsible for ensuring that your child attends school regularly. If you fail to do this, legal action can be taken against you by the Local Authority. It is a legal offence to fail to ensure your child attends school regularly.
As a parent, ensuring your child’s regular attendance at school is your legal responsibility and permitting absence from school without good reason is an offence and may result in referral to the Education Welfare Service, the issue of Penalty Notices and fines and eventually prosecution.
What the Government says...
Government guidelines state that attendance figures of 90% or less are classed as ‘persistent absence’. The government expects that in order for a child to reach their full potential, they must attend school for a minimum of 95% of the year. At William Reynolds Primary School and Nursery, we work closely with our Local Authority Education Welfare Officer to closely monitor absence rates. This regular monitoring can result in you being contacted by letter, or invited into school for a meeting, if we have concerns about attendance.
Penalty Notice Framework
In line with Telford and Wrekin Council Policy, if your child is absent for 10 school sessions within a 10-week rolling period and that absence is unauthorised, you may be subject to a Penalty Notice fine, criteria is as detailed below. From August 19th 2024, the Government have introduced a new ‘national framework for Penalty Notices’.

If your child has 10 sessions of unauthorised absence in a 10 school week rolling period, you may be issued with a Penalty Notice. These 10 sessions may include any unauthorised absence, including leave in term time and do not have to be consecutive.
Penalty Notices increased to £160 from September 2024. This can be reduced to £80 but only for the first Penalty Notice issued, if paid within 21 days – this reduction does not apply to any subsequent Penalty Notice.
Any 2nd Penalty Notice, to the same parent for the same child, issued within three years of the date of the first Penalty Notice will be charged at a flat rate of £160 which must be paid within 28 days.
A third Penalty Notice will not be issued within a three-year rolling period, to the same parent for the unauthorised absence of the same child, - alternative action or legal measures will be utilised for subsequent offences.
If in an individual case the local authority believes a Penalty Notice would be appropriate, they retain the discretion to issue one before the threshold is met. For example, when a parent purposefully tries to avoid a Penalty Notice by taking their child out of school when there is only four pupil days in school and the fifth day is for example a PD Day or bank holiday attached to that week.
In some circumstances a ‘Notice to Improve’ may be issued – however, a Notice to Improve will only be used in cases where support is appropriate. They will not be issued in cases of unauthorised leave in term time for holidays, where information for parents is included on school’s website or a simple warning by the school that a Penalty Notice could be issued if unauthorised leave in term time is taken will suffice.