Attendance Policy

Date of issue: January 2023

Date of review: September 2023

Ratified by Academy Governing Council: Jan 2023

Academy Vision

At Co-op Academy Oakwood we are ambitious for ourselves and our diverse communities that we serve. We endeavour to give our pupils and their families a memorable journey through the academy ensuring basic skills are built upon and everybody succeeds together. Building a community where learning is key. We will be determined to succeed and show respect, kindness and integrity to everyone, everyday.

Introduction

Co-op Academy Oakwood is committed to providing a full education to all pupils that

embraces the concept of equal opportunities for all. We provide a welcoming, caring

environment where every pupil feels safe and valued. Regular attendance and excellent

punctuality are essential in ensuring pupils make sustained academic progress and social

development.

The academy works in partnership with pupils and their families around the

importance of regular and punctual attendance. Regular and punctual attendance is of

paramount importance in ensuring that all children have full access to the curriculum, as

valuable learning time is lost when pupils are absent or late. We aim to overcome barriers to engagement and learning by equipping staff, families and pupils with the knowledge and skills they need to challenge the consequences of social and educational disadvantage.

Safeguarding

Co-op Academy Oakwood is committed to safeguarding every pupil. We acknowledge that safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility and ensure all of our staff are trained to be vigilant and aware of the signs and indicators of abuse and understand and follow safe working practices.

Our aim

We aim for an environment which enables and encourages all members of the community to succeed. For our pupils to gain the greatest benefit from their education, it is vital that they attend regularly and your child should be at school, on time, every day the school is open as this is proven to have a positive impact on the motivation and attainment of pupils.

Principles

There is a clear link between high attenders and high achievement for SATs. Poor attenders are much less likely to achieve the national standard. There is a direct link between under-achievement and attendance. Regular attenders make better progress, both socially and academically as well as finding academy routines, school work and friendships easier to cope with. Overall, regular attenders find learning more satisfying.

For the most vulnerable pupils, regular attendance is also an important protective factor and the best opportunity for needs to be identified and support provided.

As an academy, in accordance with Keeping Children Safe in Education, 2022, we recognise that Children Missing Education are at significant risk of underachieving, being victims of harm, exploitation or radicalisation, and becoming NEET (not in education, employment or training) later in life.

Objectives

As an academy, our objective is to maximise the attendance of all our pupils by providing an effective system of monitoring attendance and punctuality.

We recognise the external barriers that influence pupil attendance and work with families accordingly but we strive towards every pupil attending 100% of the time.

We promote excellent punctuality and attendance so that pupils are prepared for when they leave the academy.

The Law relating to attendance

Section 7 of the Education Act 1996 states that ‘the parent of every child of compulsory school age shall cause him/her to receive efficient full time education suitable:-

(a) to age, ability and aptitude and

(b) to any special educational needs he/ she may have either by regular attendance at school or otherwise.’

It is a legal obligation on parents to ensure that pupils are enrolled in a school and attend every day (unless there are exceptional circumstances). Children must receive an education between the school term after their 5th birthday and the last Friday in June in the school year they turn 16.

Roles and responsibilities

Academy Leadership Team including Governors (ALT)

ALT and Governors will offer a clear vision for attendance, underpinned by high expectations and core values, which are communicated to and understood by staff, pupils and families. ALT and Governors will make sure staff, pupils and families understand that absence from school is a potential safeguarding risk and understand their role in keeping children safe in education. ALT will actively promote great attendance at all levels of the organisation to build up a culture of great attendance.

Attendance and Family Support Adviser-  (AFS) Jane Dodds

Family support Coordinator – Karen Jones

Has overall strategic responsibility for Attendance and will monitor the attendance of disadvantaged pupils. Will take responsibility for interventions of pupils who fall below the minimum expectation of 96%. They are also responsible for coordinating incentives and rewards to support pupils to improve or maintain excellent attendance.  

Families are expected to contact the academy at an early stage and to work with the staff in resolving any problems together. This is nearly always successful. If difficulties cannot be sorted out in this way, the academy may refer the family to the local authority attendance officer. They will also try to resolve the situation by agreement but, if other ways of trying to improve the child’s attendance have failed and unauthorised absences persist, the attendance officer may use sanctions such as penalty notices or prosecutions in the Magistrates Court.

The AFS will produce the data reports required for staff, leaders and Local Authority/Government returns.  The AFS will produce group analysis reports and reports on lateness, absence and missing marks.

The family support team builds strong relationships with pupils and their families. It is therefore imperative that they make first day phone calls to families when pupils are absent to ascertain the reasons. The academy will work with families for those at risk of slipping below 96% attendance, arranging parent meetings as required.

Classroom Teacher

Will have daily, morning contact with pupils in their class. Have a responsibility to ensure that accurate registers are taken at the beginning of each session (AM and PM). All classroom teachers have a professional responsibility to promote excellent attendance, plan for catch up work and have a dialogue with pupils about positive or negative attendance patterns.

Families

Families have a responsibility for ensuring that their child attends the Academy every day and is punctual. Families have the right to be provided with information from the Academy which will help them to do this. This includes:

• The timings of the Academy day/Academy dates and holidays
• Academy procedures relating to attendance and punctuality
• Academy expectations regarding lateness
• Prompt communication of matters causing concern

The academy expects prompt communication from families by telephone giving a reason for:

• Any planned absence
• A period of unplanned absence

Families who do not conform to the above will be contacted by Academy staff and asked to provide an explanation of their child’s absence.

Practice

Attendance Register

By law, all schools are required to keep an attendance register. The academy uses an electronic system (SIMs) to accurately record attendance and punctuality to every session on a daily basis.

Pupils will receive their morning registration mark which will take place in Key stage 1 and 2 at 8:40am. Any pupils arriving late (after 8.50am) will be given a late mark. This is recorded on Inventry (which is the academy electronic signing in system). Any pupil who arrives late must go to the main reception doors to be signed in. Afternoon registers will be taken at 12.45 in Key Stage 1 and 1.00pm in Key Stage 2.

The attendance register marks whether every pupil is:

• Present
• Attending an approved off-site educational activity
• Absent
• Unable to attend due to exceptional circumstances

Absence

Families will be expected to provide an acceptable reason for every absence and will be able to report an absence on the day by contacting the Academy 0113240 2526 before 8:00am by leaving a voicemail message. Families are requested to make contact on each day of absence even where pupils are absent for consecutive days, unless otherwise agreed with one of the Family support and attendance team.

If absence reasons are medical, evidence will need to be provided such as a stamped medical card, hospital letter or prescription in order for the absence to be authorised.

Where communication is not made with the Academy about the reason for pupil absence this will be deemed as ‘unauthorised absence’. The family will receive contact from the Academy to ascertain reasons for absence based on the following timescales:

• If a pupil is absent without communication, the attendance team will attempt to contact families. You will receive a call on the first day of absence to establish the reason for absence.
• When a pupil is absent for two or more days without the academy being provided with a reason, a member of the attendance team will conduct a home visit. Home visits from the attendance team are supportive and intended to establish if any actions need to be put in place in order to support a child’s return to the academy.
• For extended periods of absence without reason, we may also contact the Child Missing Education Team at the Council and/or sibling primary schools to support with enquiries about the whereabouts of the child.
• If a child is absent from the Academy for 20 days and their whereabouts are unknown or they are reported to have left Leeds, a referral to the Child Missing Education Team will be made and the child will be removed from roll.

Medical Appointments

Families are required to make appointments out of academy hours where possible. Where this is not possible, pupils should return promptly to the academy following their appointment and also attend prior to appointment if not first thing in the morning.

If a pupil has an appointment during the day, evidence should be provided for the AFS along with prior notice of the appointment. The appointment should be made at the start/end of the academy day to minimise disruption to learning.

Punctuality

The statutory register of the academy closes at 9:20am daily. After this point, a pupil arriving late without prior notice or a reasonable explanation, will receive an unauthorised absence mark.

If a pupil arrives:

• After 8:50am they will enter the academy through the main reception entrance and sign in using Inventry.
• If a pupil arrives at the academy late without a family member, after the register has closed, families will be contacted by the academy to inform them and ascertain a reason for lateness.

Persistent lateness

It is not acceptable for pupils to persistently arrive late to school, as this not only hinders their progress but also disrupts the learning of others. The Family support and attendance team will monitor late arrivals and follow this up through:

• Meet and greet at the door

• Letters sent home

• Punctuality Panels  

Pupils need to arrive at the academy on time in order to be ready for the day ahead.

All lates and conversations with families will be logged centrally by the academy onto SIMs /CPOMs.

If a pupil is persistently late to school then a home/school agreement is to be signed to inform us that families will support punctuality and be at the forefront of any improvement. The Family support and attendance team will work with pupils and families regarding punctuality and attendance.

If all the above are unsuccessful, the Academy will use legal channels in accordance with the local authority policy. This may mean that court action is taken.

Absence follow up

The academy follows up any absences with one of the following actions so that we can establish reasons:

• Telephone call to parent/carer
• Home visit

The outcome of the follow up is recorded accordingly on the register using the correct code and a flag added.

Persistent Absentee (PA)

Persistent Absentees are pupils who have less than 90% attendance. The academy will work with families, staff, agencies and pupils to prevent children from falling into this category. Pupils with attendance of less than 90% will be identified by the attendance team and referred to the Inner East Cluster for intensive casework.

In order to prevent pupils from falling into PA category, the following strategy will ensue:

If pupil attendance falls between:

If the above intervention by the Family support and attendance team is successful, attendance will begin to rise. However, if attendance continues to decrease, the following actions will take place.

If pupil attendance falls between 71 and 90%, the Family support and attendance team will conduct home visits to ascertain a reason for attendance being PA. Legal work will begin in some cases through the Inner East Cluster with some pupils on fast track supervision. A letter will be sent home to families  which outlines their legal responsibility for ensuring that their child attends school.

We always aim to work with families to improve attendance and through all of the interventions in place. Where families are not engaging with the support we will have to take more punitive actions including:

• Parental contracts
• Fast Track Initiative
• Formal Casework
• Referral to the Inner East Cluster
• Referral to Leeds City Council for legal work

Reintegration after significant absences

Every effort will be made to re-integrate pupils successfully back into the Academy following long periods of absence. This might include:

• Phased returns and reduced timetables, in exceptional circumstances

Leave of Absence During Term Time

The Government’s amendments of the Education Regulations 2006 removed the right of

Principals to authorise family holidays and extended leave. The academy policy, therefore,

reflects this legislation.

Holidays in term time will not be granted unless it is considered to be for ‘exceptional

Circumstances.’

Where an application is made for a holiday, if the reason for travel is defined as an exceptional circumstance, this will be given to the Headteacher for authorisation.

Parents/Guardians who choose to take their child out of school during term time could receive a Fixed Penalty Notice of up to £120.

Parents/carers should complete a leave of absence form where possible for Religious

Observances such as EID. Authorisation of 1 day will be granted in such circumstances.

If a pupil fails to return from a leave of absence and contact with the parents has not been made or received, school may take the pupil off the school’s role in compliance with the Education (pupil Registration) (England) Regulations 2006. This means that the child will lose their school place.

The academy considers each application for term-time absence individually whilst taking into account circumstances and relevant context behind the request. A leave of absence is granted entirely at the Headteacher’s discretion.

Supporting Attendance

The academy recognises that poor attendance can be an indication of difficulties in a child’s life. This may be related to problems at home and/or in school. Families should make school aware of any difficulties or changes in circumstances that may affect their child’s attendance and or behaviour in school, for example, bereavement, divorce/separation, incidents of domestic abuse. This will help the school identify any additional support that may be required.

Co-op Academy Oakwood also recognises that some pupils are more likely to require

additional support to achieve excellent attendance, for example, those pupils with special educational needs, those with physical needs and looked after children.

The academy implements a range of strategies to support improved attendance. Strategies used will include:

• Regular communication with home
• Offering incentives and rewards
• Parenting contracts
• Rewards systems
• Fast Track Initiative
• Referral to the Inner East Cluster

Where families  fail or refuse to engage with the support offered and further unauthorised

absence occurs, Co-op Academy Oakwood will consider the use of legal sanctions.

Rewarding Attendance

• Recognising strong attendance is key and celebrating strong attendance is important.
• In assembly, the class with the most improved attendance will spin a wheel. Whichever colour it lands on represents the ‘award’ they will receive.

Yellow = extra playtime

Pink = games session (board games etc)

Purple = Races/sports

Blue = craft activities

Green = baking/cooking

Silver = free time

Red = chromebook/Ipad time

Orange = biscuits and juice

• Within the classroom setting, each week the class teacher will set a class target to improve from last week’s attendance. If the class achieves this, a reward will be given.
• ‘In it to win it’ is when pupils who attend the academy regularly and on time get their name put into a weekly prize draw. Names are pulled out in assembly.
• Termly certificates and prizes are awarded for excellent attendance.
• Yearly certificates and vouchers are awarded for excellent attendance.

Attendance achievements will be communicated to the community and families regularly via the website and social media.

Legal Intervention

The law requires parents to ensure that their child attends school regularly. The school has a primary responsibility in dealing with the issue of attendance, in partnership with parents and pupils. The majority of attendance issues will be dealt with by the school, however, on occasions, attendance concerns may need to be passed on to Leeds City Council Attendance Advisers.

Schools have to regularly inform the Local Authority of any pupils who are regularly absent from school, have irregular attendance, or have missed 10 school days or more without the school's permission. Schools also have a safeguarding duty, under section 175 Education Act 2002, to investigate any unexplained absences.

If a pupil is missing school without good reason and support options have been exhausted without improvement/engagement, schools can refer to the Local Authority for legal intervention. This is likely to result in the pupil case file being referred for consideration in the Magistrates Court.

Local councils and schools can use various legal powers if a child is missing school without a good reason and when other methods of support and challenge have not worked. This action can include:

• A Parenting Order
• An Education Supervision Order
• A School Attendance Order
• A fine (sometimes known as a ‘penalty notice’)

Children Missing in Education

We recognise that a child going missing from education is a potential indicator of abuse or neglect. Where a child is reported to be missing education we will comply with our statutory duty to inform the local authority of any pupil who falls within the reporting notification requirements outlined in Children Missing Education – Statutory guidance for local authorities (DfE September 2016) and follow the LSCP - Local protocols for Leeds practitioners (leedsscp.org.uk)

School and college staff members must follow the Leeds Children’s Services LA protocols

Contact: cme@leeds.gov.uk. Tel: 0113 3789686.

Elective Home Education

The academy will inform their LA of all deletions from their admission register when a child is taken off roll to be home educated at ehe@leeds.gov.uk or 0113 3785028

Where a parent/carer has expressed their intention to remove a child from the academy with a view to educating at home, the academy will work with the Local Authority and other key professionals to coordinate a meeting with parents/carers where possible. Ideally, this will be before a final decision has been made, to ensure the parents/carers have considered what is in the best interests of each child. This is particularly important where a child has SEND, is vulnerable, and/or has a social worker.

Attendance at off site provision / dual registered pupils

• Attendance at alternative provisions is monitored daily through use of first day calls and a report sent to the academy.
• Pupils will be given a ‘D’ code on SIMs when they have attended external alternative provision. Any absences will be recorded using the appropriate absence code.
• Some provisions are used on a dual-registration basis - Debbie Minnikin (SENDCO) will oversee this and will give the pupil the appropriate enrolment status. In these cases pupils will be given a ‘D’ code when they are on roll with the provision for all periods where the pupil is expected to attend the other provision/school.
• Family support and attendance team from the Academy will conduct home visits where appropriate.
• Family support and attendance team provide daily/weekly attendance figures to key staff within the Academy.
• Family support and attendance team to request regular attendance certificates for pupils attending  dual-registration provisions/schools.

Appendices

Parental Responsibilities (DfE website)                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                              

Definitions

Fine

Your local council can give each parent a fine of £60, which rises to £120 each if you do not pay within 21 days. If you do not pay the fine after 28 days you may be prosecuted for your child’s absence from school.

Prosecution

You could get a fine of up to £2,500, a community order or a jail sentence up to 3 months. The court also gives you a Parenting Order.

Education Supervision Order

If the council thinks you need support getting your child to go to school but you’re not co-operating, they can apply to a court for an Education Supervision Order.

A supervisor will be appointed to help you get your child into education. The local council can do this instead of prosecuting you, or as well.

Parenting Order

This means you have to go to parenting classes. You’ll also have to do what the court says to improve your child’s school attendance.

Missing from School Response Checklist

Referral pathway for reporting children and young people missing /absconded during the school day