Attendance

Regular school attendance – why it’s so important 

Encouraging regular school attendance is one of the most powerful ways you can prepare your child for success—both in school and in life. 

Parental attitude has a key influence on a child’s school attendance and parents/carers can do much to encourage even reluctant pupils to attend. 

Good school attendance habits are best started early. Children learn from those around them and you as parents/carers set the standards and expectations for your child. Showing your child the importance of attending school every day not only helps your child to settle quickly when starting school but helps them to keep and maintain friendships and enjoy the school environment. 

The school has high expectations for pupils’ attendance and punctuality, and ensures that these expectations are communicated regularly to parents and pupils. Pupils will be expected to attend school punctually every day they are required to be at school, for the full day.  

We expect children to be at school by 8:30am in time for the start of morning registration which is 8:45am. To reduce the number of parents/carers dropping off, we can accept children anytime between 8:30am and 8:45 am. Lunchtime is between 12:00 and 1:00pm School finishes at 3:15 pm. 

Recording your child’s attendance 

All schools are required to record details of pupils’ attendance and absence at school. They do so at the beginning of morning and afternoon sessions. If your child is absent, it is required that you inform the school the reason for the absence. 

Absence Notification 

If your child is sick we ask that you notify the school office via email admin@downampney.gloucs.sch.uk, by telephoning 01793 750294 or via ParentMail before 9am. This is a child protection security measure and ensures that no child will go missing without our knowledge. For this reason, we ask that you call on every day of your child’s absence. There is a special answer-phone function for reporting absence which is picked up by the office staff so you can call at any time. 

If your child is attending a club before school and walks to school alone, you must inform us of the absence before 8am on each day of absence. 

Medical Appointments 

We ask that you try to make most appointments outside of school hours. However, if your child has a medical appointment, please ensure you notify the office as soon as the appointment is booked. 

Family holidays/school holidays 

Children have 13 weeks annual holiday from school and school holiday dates are published well in advance online here. As such, all parents/carers are expected wherever possible to plan and take their family holidays at this time so as not to disrupt their children’s education. Education law states that parents do not have a right to take their child out of school for a holiday during term time. Only in exceptional circumstances may a headteacher grant permission for leave; and it is the headteachers decision on whether the absence is exceptional and how many days to approve. 

Parents/carers who take their child out of school without the absence being agreed and authorised by written permission from the school can be issued with a penalty fine.  

Once you have registered your child at a school it is your responsibility to make sure that she/he attends regularly and punctually. If you fail to do so the Local Authority has a statutory duty to consider legal action to enforce school attendance. 

Our school attendance policy can be found here.

More information on attendance and fines from Gloucestershire County Council can be found here.