Absence & Attendance
Absence & Attendance
All parents should promote good attendance and work in partnership with school to ensure learning opportunities are maximised. We all want the best for our children, to nurture and care for them and having an excellent attendance record at school contributes greatly to this goal. Working together, we can give pupils every chance of reaching their academic and social potential. However, the more days a child is absent from school the greater the risk of underachievement and social isolation.
Good attendance at school provides vital continuity of learning for your son / daughter. If your child is absent from school for any period, they will miss important elements of their learning.
Leave of Absence in Term Time
Absence during term time as a result of holiday/leave of absence interrupts continuity of teaching and learning and disrupts the educational progress of individual children. Bradford Children’s Services aims to minimise the amount of time lost to term time holiday/leave of absence through a policy which actively discourages parents from arranging family holidays, trip abroad etc during term-time and supports schools to authorise absence for such leave ONLY in exceptional circumstances.
The Governors at Ley Top Primary School have made the decision, following official guidance, not to authorise holiday absence during term time. If a holiday is taken, the school’s Attendance Policy makes it clear that a Penalty Notice may be issued.
A penalty notice may be made if 6 or more sessions of unauthorised absence has occurred in a 6 week period in relation to poor attendance, or if 6 session (3 days) or more of unauthorised leave has been taken.
The Penalty Notice is for £60 per parent, per child if paid within 21 days and £120 per parent, per child if paid after this date but within 28 days. The Penalty Notice will be issued by Bradford Children’s Services not the school.
Despite this, absence due to unauthorised leave during term time continues to take place, with a significant number of families taking more than one period of absence during an academic year, or taking a period of leave of four weeks or more.
A decision has been made by Bradford Council to change their approach to situations where families take two or more periods of unauthorised leave in a 12-month period (totalling 10 school days or more), or when a period of four or more weeks of leave is taken. In these instances, Bradford Council will utilise the option to start legal proceedings via the magistrates’ court, instead of issuing a penalty notice. This means that parents may be liable to receive a significantly higher fine (up to £2,500 per child, per parent) if found guilty, as well as receive a criminal record, which may be reportable to employers (for example, via a DBS Check). In rare circumstances, magistrates can consider a custodial sentence for up to 3 months. This change will come into force from 1st April 2023.
Punctuality
The school doors open at 8.40am and close at 8.50am when registration takes place. Children arriving after 8.50am will be recorded as being late (L) Children arriving after 9.30am will receive U (late after register has closed / Unauthorised absence) code, which will negatively impact on your child’s attendance. Absences or late arrivals will only be authorised if a satisfactory explanation can be provided, for example –proof of medical appointment.
Attendance Process
- If your child is absent from school, you must contact school on the 1st day of absence before 9.30am and provide a reason.
- Contact school on 01274 541554 or email attendance@leytop.bradford.sch.uk on each and every day of absence.
- 1st day call out – If your child is absent and school have not been notified you will receive a telephone call. If parent/carer is not available to speak with, a message will be left for you to ring school and a school text message will be sent.
- If school have not been contacted following this, a home visit will be arranged.
- If your child’s attendance drops below 90% letters will be issued and if there is no improvement in your child’s attendance following this, parents will be invited into school for a meeting with the attendance officer and a parenting contract may be agreed to help support tour child’s attendance in school.
- Following this, if your child’s attendance is still a concern and attendance has dropped below 80%, school may refer your child’s poor attendance to Bradford Council, who may instigate legal proceedings under Section 444 of the 1996 Education Act
Attendance Rewards
Attend school every day and have a chance of winning a prize!
Every half term children with 100% attendance will go into the Grand Prize Draw to win:
1st Prize £30 voucher
2nd Prize £20 voucher
3rd Prize £10 voucher
100% attendance certificates
| Attendance during one school year | Equals days absent | Approximate weeks absent |
|---|---|---|
| 95% | 9 days | 2 weeks |
| 90% | 20 days | 4 weeks |
| 85% | 29 days | 5 ½ weeks |
| 80% | 40 days | 8 weeks |
| 70% | 57 days | 11 ½ weeks |
| 60% | 80 days | 16 weeks |
| 50% | 100 days |
20 weeks |
Attendance Policy