Attendance

Pupils should aim for a consistently high attendance rate; the target is a minimum of 97% for all pupils over the course of the academic year.

Attendance Counts, Moments Matter

School attendance is important for equipping your child with skills for life. High school attendance is directly correlated with high attainment. Attending the school at least 97% of the time ensures that students leave school with the strongest qualifications. Furthermore, school attendance can improve overall wellbeing and support young people in developing friendships.

Attending school every day can help your child to achieve their aspirations, and the aspirations you have for them.  

You can support your child’s physical, social and mental wellbeing by ensuring they are in school every day. We know that parents and carers worry about their children’s mental health. Rather than keeping your child off school, let us know about your concerns. We can then work together on supporting your child.  

It can be hard to tell when your child is too unwell to go to school, especially with common illnesses like colds or stomach bugs. However, the NHS offers clear guidance to help parents decide when to keep children at home and when it's safe for them to attend school. Please visit their guidance page to find out more: https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/is-my-child-too-ill-for-school/  

We know that coming to school every day makes all the difference. That's why we are striving for 97% attendance.

Absence Process

If your child is going to be absent from school, please inform us of the reasons before 8am by:

- Emailing boroughstudentabsence@habstrustsouth.org.uk or

- Telephoning 020 3764 1321

Please do not email individual staff about student absence. 

If the school is not notified of the reason for absence before, or on the day of absence, it will automatically be logged as an unauthorised absence. This is because the updated ‘Working together to improve school attendance’ states that schools cannot retrospectively grant leaves of absences.

Emotion-Based School Avoidance: Guidance & Support

Emotion-Based School Avoidance (EBSA) is a growing concern for many students and can significantly impact both their educational and emotional wellbeing. The Local Council offers a range of guidance and support for students experiencing EBSA to help them reintegrate into school and manage their emotions effectively.

The following slides provide key information on the resources, strategies, and support available to families and schools to address EBSA. We encourage you to review these materials and reach out if you need further assistance or have specific questions about supporting students with EBSA.

tap ebsa.pdf

Medical Appointments

We encourage parents to not make appointments during school hours unless absolutely unavoidable.

On the occasion where an appointment is during school hours, please request a leave of absence in advance by emailing boroughstudentabsence@habstrustsouth.org.uk and include confirmation of the appointment in the email (confirmation email or text or appointment card). We ask that parents/ carers give as much notice as possible when making such a request (a fortnight where possible).

If a student has an appointment in the afternoon they should attend school in the morning, and vice versa. Please note that a parent or carer will need to collect the student from school for their appointment (unless the student is in sixth form).

Lateness

A child who is late will be expected to attend a late detention. Parents or carers will be informed by text and/or email and it is therefore important that the school has the most up to date mobile numbers for parents or carers.

Pupil Illness During School Hours

Any pupil who feels ill during school hours should let their class teacher know. We have a team of first aiders on school site who can provide the student with the necessary support.

Holidays in Term Time

Holidays are not allowed during term-time, as this is disruptive to both the pupil and to the group, especially where coursework is concerned.

As of August 2024, the Department for Education does not consider a holiday or other absence for the purpose of recreation or leisure to be a reason for absence; trips abroad can only be authorised when there are particular, exceptional, extenuating circumstances, when the school has been informed in advance, and when there are no other pre-existing attendance concerns. Therefore, wherever possible, we ask that parents schedule trips abroad outside of term time. The DfE guidance states that schools must consider penalty notices for parents or carers who take their children out of school for holidays during term time

Requesting Authorised Leave

Applications for authorised leave will be considered individually, taking into account the specific facts and circumstances and relevant background context behind the request.

All requests for special leave of absences must be made by filling in the Student Leave of Absence Application Form below and returning it, either by email it to boroughstudentabsence@habstrustsouth.org.uk, or handing it to a member of the school reception in person. Please make sure to attach or include supporting documents (e.g.: a Flight Confirmation Email with the student’s name on; the original Audition, College Interview or Sports Event invitation; Death certificate or Wedding invitation, etc.) together with the filled-in form

• Student Leave of Absence Application Form download_for_offline
  download_for_offlineStudent Leave of Absence Application Form

Senior Attendance Champion

Please click below to find our full Attendance and Punctuality Policy.