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John Ray Infant School

John RayInfant School

Attendance

John Ray Infant School recognises that positive behaviour and good attendance are essential in order to raise standards of pupil attainment and to give every child/young person the best educational experience possible. The law entitles every child of compulsory school age to an efficient, full-time education suitable to their age, aptitude, and any special educational need they may have. It is the legal responsibility of every parent to make sure their child receives that education either by attendance at a school or by education otherwise than at a school. Where parents decide to have their child registered at school, they have an additional legal duty to ensure their child attends that school regularly. This means their child must attend every day that the school is open, except in a small number of allowable circumstances such as being too ill to attend or being given permission for an absence in advance from the school.

The DfE has produced guidance for maintained schools, academies, independent schools, and local authorities: Working together to improve school attendance. Our Attendance Policy reflects the key principles of that guidance. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/working-together-to-improve-school-attendance This policy is written with the above guidance in mind and underpins our school ethos to:

• promote children’s welfare and safeguarding

• ensure every pupil has access to the full-time education to which they are entitled

• ensure that pupils succeed whilst at school

• ensure that pupils have access to the widest possible range of opportunities at school, and when they leave school It has been developed in consultation with school governors, teachers, local Headteacher Associations, the Local Authority and parents and carers. It seeks to ensure that all parties involved in the practicalities of school attendance are aware and informed of attendance matters in school and to outline the schools commitment to attendance matters. It details the responsibilities of individuals and groups involved and the procedures in place to promote and monitor pupil attendance. Our policy aims to raise and maintain levels of attendance by:

• Promoting a positive and welcoming atmosphere in which pupils feel safe, secure and valued

• Raising awareness of the importance of good attendance and punctuality

• Ensuring that attendance is monitored effectively and reasons for absences are recorded promptly and consistently. September 2022, Page 3, For our children to gain the greatest benefit from their education it is vital that they attend regularly and be at school, on time, every day the school is open unless the reason for the absence is unavoidable.

It is a rule of this school that pupils must attend every day, unless there are exceptional circumstances, and it is the headteacher, not the parent, who can authorise the absence.

You can read our attendance policy in full, attached below.