Attendance
Attendance
At Northgate we believe that attendance is of vital importance in helping a child to secure a good education and to access the learning opportunities being made available to them throughout the school day.
Attendance is tracked and monitored very carefully and meetings are held regularly to review attendance percentages. The school works closely with Futura Learning Partnership and our Local Authority.
Children are required to maintain an attendance of 96% and above.
Illness and Medical Appointments
Parents/carers must contact the school if their child is not able to attend. We have a system in place in which we will contact you by text message if your child is not in school.
You can contact the school by phone on 01278 226070 and leave a message on the pupil absence line at any time or email the school office on office@northgateprimaryschool.org.uk
If your child has a medical appointment, we ask that you provide the school office with an official letter or proof of the appointment, this will be kept on your child’s records. We would always encourage and prefer appointments to be made out of school time.
Lateness
Where lateness of arrival at school is an issue, letters of encouragement are sent to parents/carers. If poor attendance is the result of an on-going medical matter, a letter to gain consent to approach the GP for confirmation will be issued. In extreme cases of continued non-attendance a Penalty Notice will be issued.
Attendance Incentive
We do recognise and celebrate those pupils who have excellent attendance at school. Certificates and prizes are awarded at the end of each week, term and year.
- A certificate is given to the class with the highest weekly attendance and they are rewarded with a class treat
- At the end of each term (Autumn, Summer and Spring) we celebrate pupils who have achieved 100% attendance, with no more than one late and no holidays, with a certificate, pencil and coveted membership of the 100% club. All pupils who have achieved 96% attendance or more have a Golden Ticket. This ticket is entered into a draw to win a prize
- Any pupil who achieves 100% attendance for the whole academic year is able to go on a reward trip.
Attendance Policy
Term Time Leave
Term time leave must be requested in writing to the school in advance of the leave via a Term Time Leave Request form. Only requests with exceptional circumstances will be considered. Those parents who take their children out of school without prior consent put themselves at risk of receiving a penalty notice.
Why regular attendance is so important
Unbroken attendance at school is important for learning. Any absence affects the pattern of a child’s schooling and regular absence will seriously affect their learning. The table below indicates how what might seem like just a few days absence can result in children missing a significant number of lessons.
Below is guidance as to how absence impacts upon attendance each term and over the year.
Attendance during school year | Days and lessons missed over an average school year (approximately) | |
100% |
| |
Over 97 % | = 5 days absence (or less) in one year. Good attendance. | |
Below 96% | Your child will have missed 50 lessons and chances of good grades are in danger. Support from class teachers is available if you are ill for long periods or have other reasons for days of absence from school. We can help. | |
Below 90% | = more than 4 school weeks off school. Your child will have missed 100 lessons. This is called ‘Persistent Absence’. |
National Attendance Campaign
From the first day of term to the last, the small moments in a school day make a real difference to your child, attendance counts.
Is my child too ill for school?
Please click herefor government guidance.
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NORTHGATE PRIMARY SCHOOL
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