Attendance

Please call 01980 652467 before 8.25 am on each day of absence. 

Students may wake up in the morning saying that they feel unwell. Always send students to school unless they are being sick.  If they are a little ‘under the weather’ for example with a runny nose, head ache, stomach ache then please send them in, as long as your contact information is up to date, then we can send the student home if required.  We really do appreciate your cooperation with this.

Please let admin know about medical appointments in advance via 01980 652467 or by emailing office@avonvalleyacademy.org.uk

Please try to book appointments outside of the school day.  Where this is not possible, please only take the student out of school for the shortest time possible to attend the appointment.   As a school we normally only authorise a maximum of half a day for a single medical appointment; there are exceptions to this if a pupil is having a course of lengthy or specialist medical treatment.

Evidence of absence can include but is not exclusive to the following:

• Text message/ email confirming a medical appointment
• Formal letter from GP or Hospital
• Confirmation of prescribed medication clearly showing the name and date they were prescribed

The statutory marks for a student’s attendance are registration and period 5.  These make up the 100% attendance mark for the day.  If a student fails to attend before the registers close (8.50am) they will lose their AM mark and therefore only be able to achieve 50% attendance for the day.  Students are also registered internally every lesson: during tutor time and periods 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 – for safeguarding reasons.

Yes, it does. Morning registration starts at 8.25 am, and we expect all students to be in lesson and ready to learn by this time. Afternoon registers are taken at 1.45 pm (the start of period 5) and again, students are expected to be in lessons by this time. We record centrally any minutes late which a student accrues; there are a range of sanctions used to remind students of the importance of punctuality.

The Department for Education identifies attendance below 90% as ‘persistent absence’. If a pupil was to end the academic school year on 90% attendance, this would equate to four whole weeks off school. This would mean 20 days, or over 100 hours, of missed learning. The Heads of Year monitor each student’s attendance very closely, and especially those who are at risk of falling into this category.  We write home to inform you when your child’s attendance drops to around the 95% level. Students whose level of attendance causes concern, either by falling below this level, or by dropping rapidly, will be invited into school, along with yourselves, to meet with the Head of Year for a School Attendance Meeting (SAM). At this meeting we will look for opportunities to support an improvement in attendance; as a part of this process, internal attendance targets will be set.

Students who do not make an improvement in attendance following a SAM meeting, or those with a track record of weaker attendance, will be invited to a further formal meeting involving the Wiltshire Educational Welfare Officer and representatives from the school. These meetings set a formal set of attendance targets which, if not met, may lead to the prosecution of the parent/carer for failing to ensure adequate attendance of the child. Further details on the formal stages of our attendance procedures may be found in our Attendance Policy on the school website.

Students are regularly rewarded for good attendance by being given Respect points. We run attendance fortnights, and tutor group and year ‘spot’ prizes. Students can also get reward points through either having 100% or improving attendance each week

Holidays In Term Time

Taking holidays in term time will affect a child’s schooling as much as any other absence and we expect parents to help us by not taking children away in school time. There is no automatic entitlement in law to time off in school time to go on holiday. Amendments to the 2006 regulations make clear that the Headteacher may not grant any leave of absence during term time unless there are exceptional circumstances. The Headteacher should also determine the number of school days a child can be away from school if the leave is granted.

Leave of absence in exceptional circumstances include but are not exclusive to:

The Headteacher may only grant leave of absence for exceptional circumstances.

Examples of any exceptional circumstances where leave may be granted during term time are as follows:

• If a parent is service personnel and is returning from a tour of duty abroad where it is evidenced the individual will not be in receipt of any leave in the near future that coincides with school holidays.
• Where an absence from school is recommended by a health professional as part of a parent or child’s rehabilitation from a medical or emotional issue.
• The death or terminal illness of a close relative, only if Headteacher is satisfied that the circumstances are truly exceptional;
• Out of school programmes such as music, arts or sport operating at a high standard of achievement. Documentary evidence of this event will be required.

• Religious observance – The Education Act 1996 S444(3) (c), states ‘’on any day exclusively set apart for religious observance by the religious body to which his/her parent belongs’’;
• To attend a wedding or funeral of a close relative  if the Headteacher is satisfied that the circumstances are truly exceptional.

Where there are exceptional and unforeseen circumstances that fall outside of the above, the Headteacher agrees to consult with the governing body prior to any authorisation being given to the parent. Evidence would be required in each case.

If a request meets the above exceptional circumstances but falls within the following times, the Headteacher must be convinced that absence from school is the only option:

1) The first half term of any academic year (applies to all pupils).

2) Falls within an assessment period (i.e Mocks or GCSE/BTEC exams)

Examples of circumstances NOT considered as exceptional

• Holidays abroad for the purpose of visiting a sick relative, excepting where that person is seriously ill. Medical evidence may be requested.
• Holidays taken in term time due to lower cost/parental work commitments.
• Day trips to educations and/or entertainment providers e.g. theme parks, museums

As the parent/ carer you are best placed to notice early signs that your child is facing barriers to attending school.  If this is the case please contact your child’s form tutor or head of year immediately.  The earlier we can support your child with concerns, the better.

Our first approach is to listen to a child.  Students can talk to their tutor, their head of year, a member of staff that they feel comfortable talking to or they can visit the listening hub at break time.  Here, they can express concerns and we can try to overcome the issues.

Where barriers to attendance are complex, we will look at each student on a case by case basis and work with the student and the family to find a way to support better attendance.