We believe that excellent school attendance is central to a child's outcomes. We want children to love being in school and are committed to working with parents to ensure that all children have a happy, healthy experience of life at St Joseph's. You can read more about our approach to attendance in our policy, attached at the bottom of this page.
For each day your child is absent from school, for any unplanned reason (e.g. illness), you must telephone the School Office on 01483 888401 to explain the absence. Any ‘unofficial’ absence (i.e. unexplained absences) and/or frequent lateness is likely to result in a support plan to improve attendance or even a penalty notice.
Children who are vomiting or have diarrhoea must be kept at home, and not return to school for a minimum of 48 hours after symptoms have stopped.
If you know your child is going to be absent from school, for any reason other than illness or a medical appointment, you need to request a leave of absence using the attached form. The Headteacher will then determine whether this absence is classed as authorised or unauthorised.
Where parents require early collection from school, this must be arranged and agreed ahead of time with the School Office - using a Leave of Absence Form where appropriate.
The vast majority of school absence is authorised. This is when the school agrees that the child is absent for a valid reason:
The following are not considered valid reasons for children missing school:
Unauthorised absence will result in a support plan to improve school attendance and could ultimately lead to a penalty notice.