Attendance

Going to school regularly is important for your child’s future. Excellent attendance at school will show a future school, club and/or employer that your child is reliable. Parents are responsible for making sure their children receive full-time education. Talking to your child and their teachers could help solve any problems if your child does not want to go to school. 

At Cranleigh C of E Primary we want your child in school. When your child is in school it means we have the amazing privilege of helping your child to learn and grow.

Your responsibilities as a parent

By law, all children of compulsory school age must receive a suitable full-time education. For most parents, this means registering their child at a school, though some choose to make other arrangements to provide a suitable, full-time education.

Once a child is registered at Cranleigh C of E Primary, the parent is legally responsible for making sure they attend on a regular basis.  If your child does not attend school on a regular basis, you could get fined or be prosecuted in court.

Key Documentation:

Surrey County Council's Code of Conduct for the use of Penalty Notices in Cases of Non-Attendance at School can be found at the bottom of this page.

Surrey County Council's attendance advice and policies can be found HERE.

Surrey information for Gypsy, Roma and Traveller families regarding school attendance can be found HERE. A leaflet explaining when absence can be authorised can be found at the bottom of this page.

Absence reporting procedures

If your child is absent as a result of illness, please phone us between 8:30-9am on 01483 273286 on the first day of absence, and each subsequent day, to let us know the reason.

Within 5 working days of your child's return following illness, the below will be required in order to authorise their absence due to illness:

• A signed/stamped letter, appointment card, text or email dated to the time of any GP/nurse appointment

• A receipt showing any medication bought and/or a dated prescription medication label

If your child is absent due to a medical or dental appointment, you must present one of the following either before or after (within 5 working days) their absence:

• A signed/stamped letter, appointment card, text or email dated to the time of the medical/dental appointment

To request leave of absence during term time, please complete the below Form:

Leave of Absence Request Application Form

How to prevent your child from missing school

You can help prevent your child missing school by:

• making sure they understand the importance of good attendance and punctuality

• taking an interest in their education – ask about school work and encourage them to get involved in school activities

• discussing any problems they may have at school and letting their teacher or Headteacher Mrs K Pelazza know about anything serious

• not letting them take time off school for minor ailments, particularly those which would not prevent you from going to work

To avoid disrupting your child’s education, you should arrange appointments and outings:

• after school hours

• at weekends

• during school holidays

• You should not expect Cranleigh C of E Primary to agree to your child going on holiday during term time

Support for school attendance

A child’s school attendance can be affected if there are problems with:

• bullying

• housing or care arrangements

• transport to and from school

• work and money

If your child starts missing school, you might not know there is a problem.  When you find out, ask your child and then approach their teacher or Headteacher Mrs K Pelazza, the Senior Champion for Attendance.

Regular school attendance 

Cranleigh C of E Primary records details of all children’s attendance and absence at school. We must do so at the beginning of morning and afternoon sessions. If your child is absent, you must tell the school why immediately.

The school will record the absence; the Local Authority will receive this information for each child. The Department for Education also receives attendance data on the school.

Cranleigh C of E Primary adopts an attendance framework which is modelled on the work of Professor Katherine Weare. The emphasis is on developing a school culture and climate which builds a sense of connectedness and belonging to ensure all children can attend school and thrive.  The approach ensures we prioritise building solid working relationships with children/parents prior to any escalation.  The staged approach ensures we identify triggers early that can lead to poor attendance issues such as mental health issues, lack of trust, communication and relationship breakdowns and the possible lack of networking opportunities both internal (in school) and external (external agencies).

Aims

• Increase school attendance and reduce persistent absence to meet set targets.

• Ensure attendance is well managed within the school, with the appropriate level of resources allocated.

• Enable the school to make informed use of attendance data to target interventions appropriately, focusing on the key demographic groups highlighted in the 2022 DfE paper.

Objectives 

• Create an ethos within the school in which good attendance is recognised as the norm and every child/young person aims for excellent attendance.

• Make attendance and punctuality a priority.

• Set focused targets to improve individual attendance and whole school attendance levels.

• Ensure we have defined roles and responsibilities and promote consistency in carrying out designated tasks with respect to promoting attendance and punctuality.

• Record and monitor attendance and absenteeism, and apply appropriate strategies to minimise absenteeism.

• Develop a systematic approach to gathering and analysing relevant attendance data.

• Provide support, advice and guidance to parents, children and young people and develop mutual cooperation between home and school in encouraging good attendance and in addressing identified attendance issues.

• Demonstrate through the use of rewards that the school recognises good attendance and punctuality are achievements in themselves.  

Cranleigh C of E Primary's approach is evidence-informed and completely child-centred.  It allows the school to understand the whole school approach to supporting and improving attendance. Cranleigh C of E Primary is a place where every child belongs.  We create welcoming environments to allow all children to gain a sense of belonging and ultimately achieve academically through regular school attendance. 

The school policy is translated into practise through the processes and systems we follow. The escalated approach supports children at each stage.  Parents who do not engage with support understand why, at times, we must follow this process. 

Staff receive attendance training to support the whole school approach, they understand their role in improving attendance. Certain staff are identified to engage in specialist training to continue to support families and children who work with external partners.

We use data information to support children. This allows us to understand the groups, and individuals, who require specific programmes of intervention. Reviewing each programme allows us to understand the effectiveness of support and change what is not working.

Finally, we train and support all staff to understand the ‘root cause’ of concerns. Staff use the wider curriculum to allow all children to feel valued and accept themselves.  We celebrate attendance success and ensure children returning from long absence receive a planned transition.

DfE: Working Together To Improve Attendance 2024

The DfE's: Working Together To Improve Attendance paper became statutory on 19th August 2024. The Guide for Parents can be found below.