Attendance guidance for parents

One of the most important things you can do for your child is to make sure they attend school regularly and on time. This starts from the very first time your child attends an education setting e.g. nursery or foundation stage. 

Starting good attendance and punctuality habits early will help your child’s social development. Making and keeping friendships is easier if your child is there on time, every day. Have a look at our video for more information.

Absence 

Unfortunately most children will have some absence from school, usually due to illness. It is important, however, to remember that not all illnesses mean your child cannot attend school unless obviously unwell, and that your child should return to school as soon as they are able. Never keep a child off school to avoid being late, being on time is important but it is better to miss a small part of the day than the whole day.

The longer children are away from school the harder it may be to fit back into school life. The more school work they miss the harder it will be to catch up. Even though written work can be caught up, the lesson itself cannot be re-taught and valuable explanation or group activities can be lost. 

Problems in school

If your child is having problems in school please don’t keep them home, it is only delaying the chance to sort it out. Talk to someone in school.

If you are thinking of transferring schools please consider:

• some parents who request a transfer have not discussed any problems with school but have already stopped sending their child
  
• transfers can take a while to go through, meaning your child could miss a chunk of education whilst waiting
• starting a new school at any point in their education can be disruptive for a child
• all schools have similar Behaviour and Attendance policies, if your child has difficulty in managing their behaviour or attendance in one school it is likely that they will have similar difficulties in another school
• bullying is not a reason to change school – you should always talk to someone in school about any concerns and try to resolve them

Attendance and the Law

The law states that all children must receive a suitable, full time education between the ages of 5 and 16, and as a parent/carer you are responsible for this.

We have a duty in Law to ensure that parents/carers are making sure that their child is receiving a suitable education. You can choose how your child receives their education; usually parents enrol their child in a local school.

Education other than at a school

Some parents chose to provide their own education and either teach their child themselves or pay for someone qualified to educate them, at home or in another private setting.

Parents can choose to deregister their child from a school in order to provide education themselves. If you choose to do this, you should be aware that there are rules and guidance you must follow to show that you can provide this to a satisfactory level. You can be asked to provide evidence at any time if the Local Authority suspects this is not happening. Please seek advice before making a decision to remove your child from school.