Attendance

Attendance is important to us here at St James’ Lanehead Primary School.  As a school we strive to achieve the national average of 97% attendance.

We understand that there may be times when your child’s attendance may fall below this but if you feel you may need support with your child’s attendance then please ask to speak to a member of our family support team.

Below are some of the ways in which we will work to achieve this.

We will ask you to attend a meeting with the headteacher if your child’s attendance is not satisfactory.
We will contact you if your child is absent from school and we have had no explanation from you.  So please contact us if you know your child is too unwell to attend.
We may involve the school nurse if we feel the need to resolve medical absences.
We will request support from the Local Authority where we have concerns about attendance.
We will continue to recognise and reward those pupils who attend regularly and punctually.

Reducing Illness Days

When a child has a day off we must be notified by a parent or carer as to why.  This can be phone, app or letter sent in with a sibling.  If we do not receive notification and are unable to contact you a home visit will be completed.  A child returning to school after an absence will be marked as unauthorised absence until we receive a valid explanation.
If your child is saying they do not feel well and you are unsure about whether it warrants a day off please send them to school.  If they are truly ill we will ring you.
If your child has to have a medical or dental appointment in school time please do your best to have it outside of school time.  These can be made for after school or during school holidays.  If your medical practitioner does not work after this time then please make appointments for after 2pm and then your child can have their registration mark for the afternoon before you pick them up. If it needs to be a morning appointment please try and bring them to school first to get their mark and then return them to school afterwards.
Please be aware that if you child arrives after 9.25am (when registers close) this will be marked as an unauthorised absence and this will have a detrimental effect on your child’s attendance

‘Leave’ in school time

If you need to request ‘leave’ in term time there has to be exceptional reasons as to why the leave needs to be taken then. School will not be able to grant permission if the reason is ‘cost’ as it is the same for everyone.  Please do not book a holiday and then ask permission.  Holiday/leave request forms can be obtained from the school office. Please note that both parents have responsibility for children’s attendance along with anyone else who has parental responsibility (anyone who has responsibility for ensuring your child is in school such as parent’s partners).  If leave is requested both parents will be informed of the outcome of the request.
There are 190 statutory school days in one year. That means there are 175 days (weekends & school holidays) available to use for holidays.
A 2 week holiday in school time means your child has approximately 50 hours of missed work to catch up on.
If you take your child on a 2 week holiday in term time, attendance for the year immediately drops to 95%.
 

Punctuality

Poor punctuality or leaving before the end of the school day is not acceptable.
School data shows a link between poor attendance & under-achievement.
Pupils who arrive late and/or leave early also disrupt lessons, which can be embarrassing for the child and can in turn, encourage absence. It is also extremely disruptive for the rest of their class.
How you can help: Aim for 10 hours sleep a night for your child. This will make the following day at school easier for them to cope with. Develop a night time routine that involves checking their homework, reading and bed. Get their school bag ready the night before.