Attendance Matters @ Simonside AWS
Attendance Matters @ Simonside Please follow us on Twitter for regular updates & weekly attendance information @simonsideschool
96% TARGET ACHIEVED FOR AUTUMN TERM 1 As you will be aware, attendance really matters to us at Simonside and we have been working hard to improve our overall attendance for some time. We are delighted to report that our whole school attendance for the first half term was 96.3% (above our 96% target), which is fantastic! We would like to say a HUGE thank you for all of your help and support with this so far and hope that we can continue to work together to continue to build on this as the year continues. Well done, everyone! If you follow us on Twitter, you will have noticed our weekly class attendance updates (these are on the website too). This term, the race is definitely close and the prize could be won by any one of our 11 classes...3B are currently in the lead after moving islands EVERY week this term so far!
Our Current Attendance Incentives @simonsideschool Individual certificates and prizes for children with 100% attendance each term An exciting ‘mystery prize’ for each child achieving 100% for the entire year (all 3 terms)
We have even more exciting attendance news too as there are almost 120 children on track to receive their 100% attendance prize at the end of the term, which is amazing! All of the children who achieve 100% attendance this term are another step closer to the ‘mystery prize’ at the end of the year. Keep going, everyone...you can do it!
Please check the reverse of this letter for our current attendance & punctuality procedures and for further information on why regular attendance at school is so important for you and your child.
ARRIVE ON TIME...AT 5 TO 9 In conjunction with our attendance focus, we are also monitoring punctuality closely over the remainder of the year, as even a few minutes late each day can impact significantly on your child's
7th November 2016
progress. Did you know, for example, that if your child is just 5 minutes late each day, they will lose 3 full days of learning over the year? Please help your child be making sure they are at school on
time at 5 to 9 every day (our yards are open from 8.30am). If you require any support with your child's attendance or punctuality, please contact Mrs Pegman or Mrs Gibson.
An extra play time and ‘island hop’ for each class achieving a weekly attendance of 96% and above A prize for the class with the most ‘island hops’ each term (these prizes are chosen by the children and can include anything from trips to exciting places such as the cinema, to having a magician or other amazing visitors in school)
Did you know? Being 15 minutes late
each day is the same as missing 2 entire weeks of school each year.
MISSING SCHOOL MEANS MISSING OUT It can be easy to think that missing the odd day of school here and there can do no harm, but taking even a short amount of time away from school can be a problem for your child. Whilst we appreciate that there may be times when your child is unable to attend school, it is important that we work together to keep these times to a minimum to ensure your child has the best possible chances of success.
TO SEND OR NOT TO SEND?
Often a child will wake up in the morning saying that they feel unwell. Whilst we do encourage children to come to school even if they ‘feel a little unwell’ we do not want any child who is genuinely ill to come to school. Always try and send your child to school if they are a little ‘under the weather’ for example with a runny nose, headache, tummy ache. The school will always contact you if your child is unwell which is why it is vitally important that we have your correct contact details. HOWEVER, please do not send your child to school if they have any infectious illnesses like chicken pox, measles etc. Further information about illness & attendance from Public Health England can be found on the ‘Attendance Matters’ section of our website.
OUR SCHOOL PROCEDURES
WHAT CAN YOU DO TO HELP?
Ensure your child arrives on time every day
Wherever possible, book medical appointments outside of the school day (if this is not possible, please bring appointment cards to the office so that absences can be authorised)
Inform school as soon as possible if you think your child may need to be absent to discuss the reasons for this (please note, holidays in term time will not be authorised unless there are ‘exceptional circumstances’)
If your child is unwell or absent for any other reason, contact the school office before 10am on the first day of absence
Contact Mrs Pegman or Mrs Gibson as soon as possible if you think your child is unhappy at school or if there is anything we can do to support you with your child’s attendance or punctuality
As a parent, you are legally responsible for making sure your child gets a fulltime education and this means making sure they attend regularly. Our aim is to work together with parents to support you with any issues related to your child’s attendance and punctuality. To do this as effectively as possible, we will:
Monitor individual children’s attendance and punctuality on a daily basis
Contact parents/carers to establish reasons for any absence/lateness
Contact parents via letter when a child’s attendance level falls below 90% (children with an attendance of 90% are missing approximately one month or 20 days of school per year)
Parents/carers of children with less than 90% attendance for more than one half term, will be invited to a meeting with the Deputy Head Teacher / Learning Mentor to discuss ways in which we can work together to improve children’s attendance
If attendance does not improve, school will share their concerns with the LA, who may decide to take legal action against parents (which can involve penalty fines of up to £2500 per parent, per child).
96% TARGET ACHIEVED FOR AUTUMN TERM 1 As you will be aware, attendance really matters to us at Simonside and we have been working hard to improve our overall attendance for some time. We are delighted to report that our whole school attendance for the first half term was 96.3% (above our 96% target), which is fantastic! We would like to say a HUGE thank you for all of your help and support with this so far and hope that we can continue to work together to continue to build on this as the year continues. Well done, everyone! If you follow us on Twitter, you will have noticed our weekly class attendance updates (these are on the website too). This term, the race is definitely close and the prize could be won by any one of our 11 classes...3B are currently in the lead after moving islands EVERY week this term so far!
Our Current Attendance Incentives @simonsideschool Individual certificates and prizes for children with 100% attendance each term An exciting ‘mystery prize’ for each child achieving 100% for the entire year (all 3 terms)
We have even more exciting attendance news too as there are almost 120 children on track to receive their 100% attendance prize at the end of the term, which is amazing! All of the children who achieve 100% attendance this term are another step closer to the ‘mystery prize’ at the end of the year. Keep going, everyone...you can do it!
Please check the reverse of this letter for our current attendance & punctuality procedures and for further information on why regular attendance at school is so important for you and your child.
ARRIVE ON TIME...AT 5 TO 9 In conjunction with our attendance focus, we are also monitoring punctuality closely over the remainder of the year, as even a few minutes late each day can impact significantly on your child's
7th November 2016
progress. Did you know, for example, that if your child is just 5 minutes late each day, they will lose 3 full days of learning over the year? Please help your child be making sure they are at school on
time at 5 to 9 every day (our yards are open from 8.30am). If you require any support with your child's attendance or punctuality, please contact Mrs Pegman or Mrs Gibson.
An extra play time and ‘island hop’ for each class achieving a weekly attendance of 96% and above A prize for the class with the most ‘island hops’ each term (these prizes are chosen by the children and can include anything from trips to exciting places such as the cinema, to having a magician or other amazing visitors in school)
Did you know? Being 15 minutes late
each day is the same as missing 2 entire weeks of school each year.
MISSING SCHOOL MEANS MISSING OUT It can be easy to think that missing the odd day of school here and there can do no harm, but taking even a short amount of time away from school can be a problem for your child. Whilst we appreciate that there may be times when your child is unable to attend school, it is important that we work together to keep these times to a minimum to ensure your child has the best possible chances of success.
TO SEND OR NOT TO SEND?
Often a child will wake up in the morning saying that they feel unwell. Whilst we do encourage children to come to school even if they ‘feel a little unwell’ we do not want any child who is genuinely ill to come to school. Always try and send your child to school if they are a little ‘under the weather’ for example with a runny nose, headache, tummy ache. The school will always contact you if your child is unwell which is why it is vitally important that we have your correct contact details. HOWEVER, please do not send your child to school if they have any infectious illnesses like chicken pox, measles etc. Further information about illness & attendance from Public Health England can be found on the ‘Attendance Matters’ section of our website.
OUR SCHOOL PROCEDURES
WHAT CAN YOU DO TO HELP?
Ensure your child arrives on time every day
Wherever possible, book medical appointments outside of the school day (if this is not possible, please bring appointment cards to the office so that absences can be authorised)
Inform school as soon as possible if you think your child may need to be absent to discuss the reasons for this (please note, holidays in term time will not be authorised unless there are ‘exceptional circumstances’)
If your child is unwell or absent for any other reason, contact the school office before 10am on the first day of absence
Contact Mrs Pegman or Mrs Gibson as soon as possible if you think your child is unhappy at school or if there is anything we can do to support you with your child’s attendance or punctuality
As a parent, you are legally responsible for making sure your child gets a fulltime education and this means making sure they attend regularly. Our aim is to work together with parents to support you with any issues related to your child’s attendance and punctuality. To do this as effectively as possible, we will:
Monitor individual children’s attendance and punctuality on a daily basis
Contact parents/carers to establish reasons for any absence/lateness
Contact parents via letter when a child’s attendance level falls below 90% (children with an attendance of 90% are missing approximately one month or 20 days of school per year)
Parents/carers of children with less than 90% attendance for more than one half term, will be invited to a meeting with the Deputy Head Teacher / Learning Mentor to discuss ways in which we can work together to improve children’s attendance
If attendance does not improve, school will share their concerns with the LA, who may decide to take legal action against parents (which can involve penalty fines of up to £2500 per parent, per child).
