The Importance of Great Attendance and Punctuality

Great attendance is the best way to ensure your child gets the most out of their education. Children who have 100% attendance are 5 times more likely to be working at, or above, the expected standard for their age. Punctuality is also important –  a child who misses the first 10 minutes of the school day throughout the year will have missed the equivalent of a whole week of school.

At The Willows we want to support our families and pupils to ensure they are present in school as much as possible.

Supporting Good Attendance

At The Willows we provide a warm welcome to every child, every day. 

Our registers are recorded accurately and punctually so that this information may be used to identify any trends or issues which may be addressed quickly. 

Our Attendance Champion, Mrs Thursfield (sthursfield@willowsprimary.com), and our Pupil Support Officer, Mrs Rudge (arudge@willowsprimary.com), work closely to monitor attendance and resolve issues which may contribute to children missing school.

Our commitment

• Every child is made to feel welcome and wanted.
• We can administer medicine supplied from home under parental authorisation to allow children to be in school with mild illness.
• We have Cloud 9 and trusted adults who a child can approach if they have worries which may lead to them being unhappy and not wanting to attend.
• Parents are informed at regular intervals if their child’s attendance is of concern and are invited to meet with us to discuss further. We build relationships with families so that we can better understand barriers and help to reduce or remove them.
• Tailored Careplans for children with ongoing medical conditions.
• Family Star support meetings to identify barriers and to create a plan of action to build improvement.
• We will meet regularly and review progress and external support which may be accessed by the pupil, their families and school.

This is a brief overview of some of the support in place and parents are encouraged to approach us with any concerns at any time. 

Reporting Absence

Absence should be reported to the School Office each day before 9.30am by either

• Calling 01782 233280 and selecting Option 1
• Sending a message to the school office on Class Dojo
• By visiting the Front Desk
• By emailing attendance@willowsprimary.com

Messages should not be sent to a class teacher as they do not have the opportunity to report this to the office or may not see messages until later in the day.

If a reason for absence is not provided to the School Office we will text the first contact. We will then phone parents and other contacts. Staff may make a visit to the home address where there is a concern for safety or request a Police visit. 

Medical and dental appointments should be arranged outside of the school day. If this is not possible children should attend before and after the appointment. Evidence of the appointment should be provided for the absence to be authorised. 

Registration and Lateness

Unauthorised Absence and Holidays

The School year comprises of 190 days and our curriculum is designed to be engaging and fast paced. It is important that children are not missing out on this valuable learning time unnecessarily. All holiday leave should be booked outside of the school term.

Holidays will be considered an unauthorised absence except in the most exceptional circumstances and evidence of these circumstances will be required. 

A request for leave form must be submitted to the school office with at least 4 weeks notice to allow this to be considered.

Unauthorised absences will be referred to the Local Authority as per the guidance below and may lead to the associated fine. Please note that not requesting a leave of absence or providing false information in order to take a holiday does not protect against a referral to the service. 

Guidance on Penalty Notices for School Attendance – effective 19th August 2024

Attendance Policy

Attendance Newsletter – Autumn 2024