Attendance

The school strongly holds the view that every lesson counts and discourages parents from taking children out of school in term time.

Please note that holidays cannot be authorised in term time. However it is recognised that there may be very exceptional circumstances in which a child needs to be absent. Under these conditions, an application for leave of absence during  term time must be made to the head teacher no fewer than two weeks in advance of the proposed absence. Forms for these applications are available in the entrance lobby at our school office or can be downloaded at the bottom of this page. Any absence that has not been authorised by the headteacher will be classed as an unauthorised absence.

Children whose attendance is less than 90% are classed as persistent absentees.  Missing 10% of school time is equivalent to having a full day off every fortnight.  This means persistent absentees miss vital parts of their education and often fall behind; it also has a detrimental impact on their ability to maintain strong friendships among their peers. The headteacher will reach out to parents whose child's attendance at school is becoming a concern. The headteacher will write to parents of children at risk of becoming persistently absent to make them aware of the school's concern and will always request a face-to-face meeting with parents of children whose attendance falls below 90%. The purpose of a meeting with the headteacher is to discuss the reasons for your child's absence and to establish ways that the school can support you and your child in improving their attendance.

Holidays in term time

The headteacher is not permitted to authorise holidays in term time. If there are exceptional reasons put forward by the parent, the headteacher will contact the school's Attendance Officer (Westmorland and Furness Local Authority) to see if the reason can be authorised. The headteacher will write to you to let you know the decision that has been made.

The headteacher has a duty to refer all unauthorised term time holidays to the Local Authority and a fine will be issued to each parent. Headteachers in all Westmorland and Furness schools must follow this procedure. The school's nominated  Attendance Officer meets with the headteacher every half-term to check registers and attendance data and to ensure that the headteacher is following the correct procedures.