Improving Attendance is Everyone's Business.

Our School Approach

Our school approach is written in conjunction with the DFE ‘Working together to improve school attendance’. We work together with partners to ensure that we have the right culture in school to promote good attendance alongside the right support being offered at the right time to enable pupils to fully access education.

We recognise that the barriers to accessing education are wide and complex and therefore remain professionally curious at all times, seeking to expose the barriers to school attendance. We build strong relationships with our families, ensuring that they know we are a source of support at all times, that we are approachable and that we genuinely want to achieve the very best for their children.

EXPECT:

Our attendance policy sets out the clear expectations of the school. All staff are familiar with the policy because good attendance is everyone’s responsibility. This policy is shared with parents annually, is available on our website and is communicated with pupils in the appropriate ways
School attendance expectations are set at the point of admission to our school
Attendance expectations are reinforced at transition, SEND reviews and parent meetings
A colour coded system ensures clarity of expectations for parents, an helps them to understand where their child’s attendance falls against those expectations
Attendance forms part of parent meetings and our expectations are set out clearly
All children engage in Celebration Assembly each week which reinforces the school attendance target of 96% and celebrates class attendance
All winning class attendance is displayed in the classrooms to promote good attendance
The focus for celebration is on classes rather than individuals to ensure that pupils do not feel unnecessary pressure in unavoidable circumstances. Where there are long term individual circumstances in a single class, this is taken into account as part of the weekly celebration
Attendance data is communicated weekly with parents on Dojo
Attendance data, alongside our expectations, are included on annual school reports
Attendance expectations are shared with governors within Headteacher reports
Class teachers talk to their pupils about the importance of attendance regularly
All families are regularly reminded that term time holidays are not authorised under any circumstances and that holidays taken in term time may be referred to the Local Authority for a Fixed Penalty Notice (FPN)
All families are aware that a leave of absence request needs to be submitted for any planned absence from school
First day calls are made where a child has not attended; this reinforces our expectation that children should be in school, acts in line with our safeguarding policy and is a first step in supporting families with attendance

MONITOR

Attendance is tracked on an individual basis. Any pupil who does not have attendance levels of 96% or more at the end of each half term is discussed by the parent support worker and Headteacher and appropriate actions are agreed and tracked for impact
Half termly attendance percentages are communicated with families informing them of their child’s attendance level and any actions required. This is sometimes an agenda item at a parent consultation meeting.
Letters are sent to families termly to update them about their child’s attendance level.
Adapted letters are sent to those families who are already working with school on a regular basis (e.g. children with a temporary long term illness, a partial timetable or a specific medical plan) to inform them of their child’s attendance
Attendance is monitored at each pupil progress meeting when discussing barriers to pupil progress and is also included on all SEND review paperwork
Each pupil is tracked across the year so that patterns can be monitored carefully.
Pupils who end the year being monitored for attendance become a focus family for the start of the new year. These pupils’ attendance will be monitored more closely and these families will be prioritised for support.
Pupils whose attendance is below 96% are monitored more closely and dips in attendance between monitoring points results in a school attendance discussion. Action is then decided based on the known circumstances. This is also discussed with families. These families are prioritised for support.
Attendance is tracked by year group and contextual factors (e.g. Pupil Premium) each half term, so that the parent support worker can monitor their levels of attendance and pursue enquiries and investigations for underperforming groups.
Staff are professionally curious, looking for patterns of absence to highlight to the parent support worker and senior leadership
Lateness is monitored to identify families who are frequently late and may require additional support.
RecordMy is used to record any discussions about attendance with families or professionals.

LISTEN AND UNDERSTAND:

There is an attendance team made up of

Our Office Team is a parent’s first point of contact when discussing their child’s attendance, including as first day caller. Their warm and supportive manner ensures families know we want to help them in ensuring their children attend well at school.
It is made clear on all communications about attendance that that aim of our systems are to support and empower families, rather than punish.
When a pupil’s attendance is identified as a concern by the attendance team, the relevant communication is shared with emphasis on supportive practice. At every step of monitoring attendance, families are made aware that they can speak to school.
Where attendance requires a formal attendance meeting (below 92%), our parent support worker meets with families to discuss barriers, ways to support and ensures school have all the relevant information. This is recorded in the form of an Attendance Contract, signed by both parties and revisited the following half term.
As a school we continually look to employ supportive strategies and techniques to improve pupil attendance.
The strategies and techniques and increase or decrease in significance as the child or family needs more or less informal support.

FACILITATE SUPPORT

FORMALISE SUPPORT

ENFORCE