Attendance

Hope School expects excellent attendance from all our pupils.  It is only by attending every day and by joining in with school life that a pupil can make the progress they are capable of. Pupils say they enjoy the time spent as a member of Hope School. 

 

We consider a pupil with above 97% attendance to have outstanding attendance and a pupil with between 90% - 96.9% attendance to have good attendance. However a pupil with between 87% - 89% attendance requires improvement and pupils with less than 86.9% have inadequate attendance.  

 

Hope School has a duty of care to each pupil.  If a pupil’s attendance is a cause for concern the school will raise its concerns with appropriate professionals such as the Education Welfare Officer, Social Worker, Family Support Worker, Police etc. 

 

Please support Hope School in ensuring pupils attend at every opportunity by making medical and dental appointments etc. outside school hours or during holiday periods.  If it is necessary for an appointment to be made during term time please make the appointment at the end of the day so the least amount of education is missed.

 

The government expects pupils to have 97% attendance and require the school's EWO to meet with the parent/carer of every pupil with attendance that falls below 90% over a half term.  These meetings will be held at Hope School.

 

How Hope School Deals With Pupil Absence

Parents and Carers are asked to contact the school office by telephone as early as possible on the first day that a pupil is absent.  If a pupil is absent and the school is unaware of the reason for the absence a member of the admin' team will telephone the home.  If they do not get a reply to their call they will leave a message on an answerphone if possible and send a text asking for a reason for the absence.

If a pupil is absent for more than three days without a reason being given a letter will be sent to ask why the pupil is absent and the school’s Educational Welfare Officer will be informed and may call to the home to find out why the pupil is absent.

 

Although parents and carers may have told the school the reason for their son/daughter/charge’s absence it is up to the Head Teacher to authorise the absence, in other words, Mr Naik has to agree that the reason for the absence was good enough to prevent a pupil from attending school. 

 

If a pupil’s attendance is causing concern there are several things the school may do e.g. parents and carers may be invited to meet with school staff to discuss ways in which the school can support the pupil in improving his attendance. The Education Welfare Officer may arrange appointments at Hope School to discuss attendance and a letter may be issued informing parent/carers that attendance must improve over a given period of time or court proceedings may be initiated and could result in a fixed penalty fine or more serious penalties if attendance does not improve.

 

Hope School will always work with parents to find ways to improve individual pupil attendance but will reluctantly support the prosecution of parents and carers for poor attendance if all other attempts to improve attendance have not worked.

 

It is important that the school office can contact parents and carers at all times so we ask all parents to keep in contact with the school, making sure they let the school office know if they change address or telephone number so the admin' team can update their records.

 

Term Time Holidays  

The Headteacher and Governors expect that family holidays will be taken during the holiday periods.  We follow LEA policy and procedures for attendance and any holidays taken in term time will be unauthorised.

 

Support Offered

If your son/daughter/charge is reluctant to attend school for any reason or you have any concerns regarding their attendance please contact the school office to discuss the issue with Ms E Anderson, Head of Personal Development, Behaviour and Welfare.   If the school is unaware of issues that are having an impact on pupils wanting to attend school we are unable to offer support and work towards a resolution.  Please help us help all our pupils achieve excellent attendance by sharing information and concerns with us. 

 

Punctuality

If your son/ daughter/charge misses the taxi provided by the School Transport Department it is the parent/carer’s responsibility to ensure he attends school.  A missed taxi is not a reason for a pupil to miss a whole day of education.  Please be aware that the taxi is tracked by satellite so it is possible to confirm what time the taxi called to a house.

If the taxi provided by School Transport is late please contact the school office by 7.50 am.  The school office will not know if a taxi has not called for a pupil unless they are told therefore the earlier you contact the school office staff can the take prompt action to try and resolve the issue.

 

Please be aware that pupil punctuality is discussed with the school’s Education Welfare Officer.  If a pupil is persistently late then the Education Welfare Officer or the school’s office staff will call to discuss ways in which punctuality can be improved.  The school register closes at 8.45 am.  If a pupil arrives after this time for any reason other than an issue with the taxi provided by the School Transport department they will be recorded as absent for the morning session.

Article 28; Every child has the right to an education. Primary education must be free and different forms of secondary education must be available to every child. Discipline in schools must respect children’s dignity and their rights. Richer countries must help poorer countries achieve this.