A student attending school at 90% has missed approximately one day every two weeks. Over five years of secondary school, this can represent a significant amount of missed learning. We therefore encourage all families to make attendance a priority and to work with us if there are difficulties that are affecting their child's ability to attend regularly.

Punctuality

Students must arrive at school before 8.25am

Being on time matters. Students who arrive punctually are ready to learn from the beginning of the school day and are less likely to miss important information, learning or pastoral activities.

Students are also expected to arrive on time to every lesson. Persistent lateness can have a significant impact on learning and can also disrupt the learning of others.

Attendance is recorded in accordance with the Department for Education's statutory requirements. The attendance register is taken at the beginning of the morning session and once during the afternoon session. Registers can remain open for a maximum of 30 minutes. A student who arrives after the register has closed will be recorded as absent for that session rather than simply receiving a late mark.

Parents and carers can view attendance information through Arbor.

We ask parents and carers to support good punctuality by:

• Ensuring their child has enough time to get ready and travel to school each morning.
• Helping their child establish a consistent morning routine.
• Encouraging their child to prepare their bag, uniform and equipment the evening before.
• Supporting the school in addressing any concerns about persistent lateness.

Where a student is repeatedly late, the school will work with the student and their family to understand the reasons and take appropriate action.

When can my child be absent from school?

Parents and carers have a legal responsibility to ensure that their child attends school regularly. Where a child is registered at a school, they are expected to attend every day that the school is open unless the absence is permitted by law or authorised by the school.

The circumstances in which an absence may be authorised are limited. These include:

• The student is too unwell to attend school.
• The school has granted permission for the absence in advance because of exceptional circumstances.
• The absence is for religious observance recognised by the relevant religious body.
• There is another specific circumstance in which the law permits the absence.

Schools are responsible for deciding whether an absence should be authorised. Parents and carers should not assume that an absence will be authorised simply because a reason has been provided.

What should I do if my child is absent?

If your child is unable to attend school, you must contact the school's absence line by 8.30am on each day of the absence.

Telephone: 01473 823496 – press option 1

Please provide:

• Your child's full name
• Their Form Tutor group
• The reason for their absence

If we do not receive a reason for an absence, we will contact you on the first morning. If we are unable to make contact, we may contact the other emergency contacts held on our records.

Where we remain unable to establish the reason for a student's absence or their whereabouts, we may undertake further safeguarding and attendance checks, including a home visit. In circumstances where a student cannot be located or there are concerns about their welfare, the school may need to work with the Local Authority and other agencies in accordance with our safeguarding procedures.

Can I request a leave of absence?

Parents and carers can request a leave of absence, but this must be requested in advance and will only be granted where the circumstances are considered exceptional.

The Headteacher has the discretion to decide whether a request meets the threshold for exceptional circumstances and, if approved, how long the absence should be.

The Department for Education's current guidance states that schools should consider each request individually and should not operate blanket policies that automatically grant or refuse leave of absence.

Can I take my child on holiday during term time?

Parents and carers should arrange family holidays during the school holidays and avoid taking their child out of school during term time.

Under current DfE guidance, a family holiday during term time will not be considered an exceptional circumstance. A request for leave of absence must be made in advance, but parents should not expect permission to be granted for a holiday.

If a holiday is taken during term time without the school's permission, the absence will normally be recorded as unauthorised.

Penalty notices

There is a national threshold at which schools must consider whether a penalty notice is appropriate. This is 10 sessions of unauthorised absence within a rolling 10-school-week period, normally equivalent to five school days. The sessions can be consecutive or spread across the 10-week period and can include different types of unauthorised absence, including term-time holidays and arriving after the register has closed.

Schools and local authorities must consider each case individually. Where support is appropriate, this should normally be provided before legal intervention. However, the DfE guidance specifically recognises that support may not be appropriate in cases such as an unauthorised term-time holiday.

Where a penalty notice is issued:

• The first penalty notice is £160 per parent, per child, reduced to £80 if paid within 21 days.
• A second penalty notice issued to the same parent for the same child within a three-year period is £160, with no reduced rate.
• A third penalty notice cannot be issued to the same parent for the same child within three years. Alternative legal action may then be considered, including prosecution.

Parents and carers should therefore carefully consider the impact of taking their child out of school during term time.

How can we support your child's attendance?

We recognise that there are many different reasons why a student may struggle to attend school. The DfE's current approach places a strong emphasis on working in partnership with families to understand and remove barriers to attendance, rather than simply responding to absence with sanctions.

If we have concerns about your child's attendance, we will work with you to understand what is causing the difficulty and identify appropriate support.

This may include:

• Meeting with you and your child to understand the reasons for absence.
• Working with your child's Form Tutor, Year Learning Leader or other members of staff.
• Providing pastoral or wellbeing support.
• Addressing difficulties within school, such as friendship issues, bullying or concerns about learning.
• Supporting students with SEND or medical needs where these are affecting attendance.
• Helping families access appropriate services or support beyond school.
• Agreeing clear actions with the student and their family and reviewing progress regularly.

Where attendance difficulties are more complex, we may work with the Local Authority or other relevant services to provide additional support.

Our aim is always to work with students and families to improve attendance and ensure that every student has the opportunity to benefit from a full and successful education.

Attendance and future opportunities

Good attendance helps students to build strong learning habits, develop confidence and make the most of their education. It also helps students to develop the reliability, organisation and commitment that will be important in further education, employment and adult life.

The latest ONS earnings data available in 2026 shows that median gross annual earnings for full-time employees who had been in their jobs for at least a year were £39,039 in April 2025. The Department for Education has also published new research in 2026 showing that graduates earn, on average, substantially more over their lifetimes than comparable people who do not attend higher education.

Rather than focusing on a particular salary figure, we want our students to understand that education, qualifications, skills and good habits can all contribute to their future opportunities. Regular attendance is one of the foundations on which that success is built.