Absence

It is important that students attend school regularly to make the most of the learning opportunities provided by Trinity Academy St Edward’s. Regular attendance helps to form good habits which prepares students for the world of work. It has also been proven that high attendance and academic achievement are linked. Parents/carers have a vital role to play in promoting good attitudes towards attendance.

Why attendance matters

Encouraging regular school attendance is one of the most powerful ways you can prepare your child for success, both in school and in their working life. When you make school attendance a priority, you help your child get better grades, develop healthy life habits, avoid dangerous behaviour and have a better chance of securing their ideal career path. National studies show that missing only two days a month will reduce your child’s exam results by one whole grade.

Illness

We understand that children get ill, but there are many minor ailments which do not require an absence from school. These include colds, and issues which can be managed with painkillers, such as headaches, stomach aches, sore throats, and period pains. We do not ask that students stay off for 48 hours following an episode of vomiting that is not due to infection, and that they show good personal hygiene and wash their hands regularly on their return to school.

According to Government legislation, schools are not required to authorise absence unless medical evidence is provided. It is important to note that a parental phone call does not necessarily guarantee that an absence will be authorised.

Absence

To report an absence please call 01226 664166 or email contactus@stedwards.trinitymat.org

Please contact us as early as possible on the first day of your child’s absence from school, and again on any subsequent days. For us to safeguard your child, we need parental confirmation for every day of absence.

If we do not receive notification of your child’s absence from school, you will be contacted by our Attendance Lead and where required, a home visit will be conducted to complete a safe and well check. Please be aware that as part of the academy’s commitment to safeguarding children, home visits will be conducted when a child has been absent from school for three days or more.

Formal attendance process

Students who are not meeting attendance expectations will be supported by the academy to increase their attendance. However, if this process is unsuccessful, parental engagement will be expected to avoid pursuing more formal processes. These could include Local Authority intervention and fixed penalty notices. If these interventions continue to be unsuccessful, students may be at risk of losing their place at Trinity Academy St Edward’s. We work closely with the Barnsley Local Authority attendance team to ensure all our processes and procedures match that of the Local Authority.

Student Medication

If you require Trinity Academy St Edward’s to hold medication for your child which they will need to access regularly we would be grateful if you could please complete a medication consent form which can be requested by emailing contactus@stedwards.trinitymat.org.

Appointments

We ask that appointments are, where possible, arranged outside of school hours. On those occasions where this proves impossible, we will allow students to leave school to attend their appointment (if an appointment card or letter is provided), but we ask that they return to school afterwards.

Uniform Issues

Please do not keep your child off school due to uniform issues. Trinity Academy St Edward’s has spare uniform to lend to students on a short-term basis to allow parents/carers to rectify the situation.

Absence during school term

The law does not grant parents an automatic right to take their child out of school during term time.  The Education (Pupil Registration) (England) 2006 Act states that “head teachers may not grant any leave of absence during term time unless there are exceptional circumstances.”  Trinity Academy St Edward’s will request penalty notices for unauthorised term time holidays. (Penalty amount per parent, per child is £60 if paid within 21 days, £120 if paid after this date but within 28 days. Please note that this money does not go to the academy but to the local authority.) Failure to pay a Penalty Notice could result in a parental prosecution for non-attendance.

Please note that in line with Government guidance on school attendance the academy are not obliged to mark a student as “ill” unless we have some sort of medical proof for this.  Failure to provide this evidence could result in a Penalty Notice being issued for unauthorised absence.

Just think…

Although 90% attendance might sound high, it really isn’t! The Government’s minimum attendance level is 97%. If a student has average attendance of 90% then they are missing:

• Half a day of education every week
• Four teaching weeks (20 days) every year
• Half a school year during their time in secondary education