Attendance

We believe that regular attendance is essential for students to achieve their best and benefit fully from their education. Attending school every day helps students build strong relationships, develop key life skills and prepare for future success.

Reporting an absence

We check on the first day of absence to find out why any child is absent if we haven’t been contacted by parents/carers. If your child is absent please could you telephone or email the school office to notify us on the first day of absence: Contact us

Day 1:

Contact the school to report the absence and provide the reason and expected return date.

Day 2 and beyond:

Keep the school informed of your child’s progress and update the expected return date where possible. Absences can be reported by phone or via email contactus@liftwesterings.org

First day calling policy

If we haven’t heard from you by a set time (usually 10:30 am), a member of the school’s administration team will contact you to confirm the reason for absence.

School attendance and the law

Parents and carers are legally responsible for ensuring their child attends school regularly and punctually. Failure to do so could result in legal action by the local authority.

Under the Education (Pupil Registration) Regulations 2006, only the school can authorise an absence – not parents or carers.

Time off for holidays during term time is not a legal right. Any request for a leave of absence must be made in advance by completing an absence form and submitting it to the school office. If a holiday is taken without permission, the absence will be recorded as ‘unauthorised’ and could result in legal action.

You can read the government advice here:

https://www.gov.uk/school-attendance-absence

Why is attendance important?

Regular school attendance is essential because:

It is a legal requirement for children aged 5 to 16
It supports academic success and future opportunities
Schools have a safeguarding responsibility for all students
It helps develop social skills and strong relationships
Schools have a safeguarding responsibility for all students
It ensures students gain the qualifications they need for their next steps in education or employment

Attendance expectations

Students are expected to attend school every day
It is important that children arrive on time. Our morning session starts at 8.50 a.m. and afternoon session at 12:55 (KS1) and 1.15p.m. (KS2). If your child is not present when the register is taken they will receive a late mark up until 30 minutes after registration, after that time an unauthorised absence is recorded. Any pupil who arrives after the registration closes must go to the school office to register their attendance.
At Westerings, we expect that all children will attend school regularly. Occasional absences are to be expected (illnesses, for example) which is why we have set an ambitious but realistic target of 97% for every child. Even at 3% absence, this reflects around 5-6 days of lost learning within a school year.
To avoid disruption to your child’s attendance, medical and dental appointments should not be booked during the school day whenever reasonably possible. When they are, you should ask the school in advance for a leave of absence and collect them as close to the time of the appointment as possible and return them to school for the rest of the school day afterwards.

How families can support good attendance

Encourage good sleep and morning routines
Be firm about attending school unless your child is genuinely unwell
Communicate with the school about any barriers to attendance
Seek support early if you have any concerns

Requesting a leave of absence

If you need to request a leave of absence during term time, you must complete a leave of absence form and return it to the school office. Please note that email requests cannot be accepted.

Severe weather

Very occasionally, severe weather can create conditions which affect the ability to keep the academy open. A decision to close may need to be made in the following circumstances:
- Severe weather occurs when the school is already open and the severe weather incident occurs or is forecast for the middle of the day;
- The night before a severe weather incident has been forecast;Early morning after or during a severe weather incident.

‍The main considerations in making decisions to close are:

- Health and safety of students, staff, and visitors travelling to and from and around the site;
- Travel delays at the start of the day causing supervision issues in the school;
- Ability to provide food for students and staff during the academic day;
- Effects of the extreme conditions on the school site; and
- Travel considerations later in the day for a safe journey home.

Whenever there is a school closure, parents/carers will be contacted in the following ways:

- Via this website (on the front page);
- Our electronic means of communication (parents will need to be registered with us)

Only the Headteacher can make the decision to close the school. All Headteachers in the Hockley area have pledged to work together to co-ordinate opening/closure in severe weather across the region.

Unauthorised absence

Some absences are allowed by law. For example, if a child is ill or there is a family crisis such as a funeral. However, there are other times when pupils are absent which are not permitted. We need the help of parents/carers to cut down on unacceptable types of absence. We realise that on some occasions there may be a particular problem that causes your child to be absent. Please let us know and we will deal with it sympathetically.In cases of absence for any reason, please telephone the academy by 9.30 a.m. on the first day of absence, and leave a message on our automated message system. You can also email contactus@liftwesterings.org to notify us. Any unexplained absences are indicated in the register as ‘unauthorised’.
A child arriving late after the register has closed should report to the main office. If they are unaccompanied by an adult they should have a note explaining why they are late.