Attendance

Term Dates 2023/2024

Autumn term 2023

Monday 4th September – Inset Day – Staff Only
Tuesday 5th September – Years 7 and 12
Wednesday 6th September – Whole School in
Autumn Half Term – 23rd October to 27th October
Thursday 23th November – Inset Day – school closed
Friday 24th November – Occasional Day – school closed
Wednesday 20th December – End of Autumn Term

Spring Term Dates 2024

Thursday 4th January 2024 – Start of Spring Term
Spring Half Term – 19th February to 23rd February
Friday 8th March – Inset Day – school closed
Thursday 28th March – End of Spring Term

Summer Term Dates 2024

Monday 15th April 2024 – Start of Summer Term
Monday 6th May – May Day Bank Holiday
Summer Half Term – 27th May to 31st May
Friday 19th July – Last day of Summer Term
Monday 22nd and Tuesday 23rd July – 2xInset Days – school closed

Attendance

Regular and punctual attendance at school is vital to ensure continuity of your child’s education. Any absence from school must be explained by a letter from the parent on the pupil’s return to school. Parents are asked to note the following information:

Authorised Absences

Under section 1 of the Education Act 1993, a pupil’s absence may be treated as unauthorised if not covered by the following:

By reason of sickness or any unavoidable cause
On a day exclusively set apart for religious observance by the religious body to which his or her parents belong
With leave granted by a person (e.g. the Headteacher) authorised to do so by the Governing Body of the school

According to the DFEE circular 11/91, there are other circumstances in which the Headteacher might reasonably exercise discretion to grant leave, including:

Following the death of a member of the child’s close family
When attending an interview with another educational establishment
When attending an unavoidable medical or dental appointment

Leave of Absence

Head teachers should only authorise leave of absence in exceptional circumstances. If a head teacher grants a leave request, it will be for the head teacher to determine the length of time that the child can be away from school. Leave is unlikely, however, to be granted for the purposes of a family holiday as a norm.

Head teachers should not grant leave of absence unless in exceptional circumstances. The application must be made in advance and the head teacher must be satisfied that there are exceptional circumstances which warrant the leave. Where a leave of absence is granted, the head teacher will determine the number of days a pupil can be away from school. A leave of absence is granted entirely at the head teacher’s discretion.

If a school does not authorise a leave of absence for the purpose of a holiday but the parents still take the child out of school, or the child is kept away for longer than was agreed, the absence is unauthorised. The regulations do not allow schools to give retrospective approval. If the parents did not apply for leave of absence in advance, the absence must be recorded as unauthorised.

Parents have a legal duty to make sure that their child aged 5-16, if registered at a school, attends that school regularly. If taking an unauthorised term time holiday is grounds for issuing a penalty notice according to the local authority’s code, and if the leave of absence for holiday was not authorised by the school, either the school or the local authority may issue a penalty notice.

School attendance – Statutory guidance and departmental advice (DfE August 2013)

Rates of authorised and unauthorised absence for pupils of compulsory school age 2022 – 2023:

The total number of registered pupils of compulsory school age on roll for at least one session of the reporting period to the Friday before the last Monday in May = 1201
Total number on roll, including 6th Form = 1401
Percentage of half days (sessions) attended throughout the period = 93.5%
Percentage of half days (sessions) missed through authorised absence = 5.5%
Percentage of half days (sessions) missed through unauthorised absence = 1%

Rates of authorised and unauthorised absence for pupils of compulsory school age 2021 – 2022:

The total number of registered pupils of compulsory school age on roll for at least one session of the reporting period to the Friday before the last Monday in May = 1112
Total number on roll, including 6th Form = 1313
Percentage of half days (sessions) attended throughout the period = 93.1%
Percentage of half days (sessions) missed through authorised absence = 6.2%
Percentage of half days (sessions) missed through unauthorised absence = 0.7%