A key factor to your child achieving academic success at school is through regular and punctual attendance. Full attendance makes a significant difference to the academic success and results your child can expect to achieve.
At Mountain Ash Comprehensive School, we recognise the positive impact that regular attendance has on achievement. Excellent attendance at school is crucial to give your child the best chance of success. We need your support in ensuring that absences are not planned in school time so that your child has every opportunity to succeed.
Key documentation and forms
The school has a set format for requesting that a holiday absence be authorised (further information below), and for how evidence is required linked to absence due to illness. Both of these forms can be downloaded from here for printing. Also included is the letter from the Local Authority outlining the use of Fixed Penalty Notices (FPN).
Evidence suggests a strong link between attendance and school success:
- Every child should aim for attendance of 95% or above
- 80% attendance is the equivalent to having one day off every week
- If you take a two week holiday in term time your child’s attendance will automatically be reduced to less than 95%
- Research suggests that 17 missed school days every year equates to a drop in a GCSE grade
What we do as a school
- Pupils are given their weekly attendance data by their form tutor each week – this promotes engagement and discussion of any issues
- Pupils write their attendance and attendance zone in their planner on a weekly basis – this promotes awareness
- Pupils under 86% are identified and monitored by their Wellbeing and Attendance Manager and in some cases the Attendance Welfare Officer (AWO)
What you can do as a parent
- Contact school as soon as possible if your child is absent, on: 01443 479199 option 1
- Aim to book all medical or dental appointments outside of school time whenever possible
- Regularly ask your child their weekly and cumulative attendance
Authorised holidays
We realise that there will be certain exceptional circumstances when it may be appropriate to authorise a holiday absence and therefore the following reasons have been agreed that a Headteacher may approve such a request:
- Families of serving armed forces personnel
- Parent of child experiencing a life limiting illness
- Families that have suffered an acute trauma
Fixed Penalty Notice (FPN)
The criteria for issuing fixed penalty notices are:
- Where a pupil has accrued 10 or more sessions of unauthorised absences in the current term
- Where a pupil has been persistently late on 10 or more occasions in the current term, arriving more than 30 minutes after the registration period
- Where a parent refuses to engage with the school in the interest of improving their child’s school attendance levels
- Where a pupil is repeatedly caught truanting in public places during school hours
- Where a holiday in term time has been requested but has been unauthorised
