Attendance
Please read:
Important letter from Bradford Council
At St John the Evangelist we seek to work in partnership with parents to ensure that each child’s experience is one that will enable them to make good progress by building on their skills and talents within a continuous and consistent learning environment. If together we are to achieve this aim, regular attendance at school is vital and full parental support and co-operation in this matter is necessary.
Please remember from September 2024 Bradford Council have changed the fines for unauthorised absences.
From September 2023 to July 2024 our whole attendance was 95.9%. As a school we are well above the national average and have worked hard to ensure our pupils are in school every day
The 2023/2024 national average for all schools in England was 92.8%
The school day starts at 8.55am and finishes at 15:15pm.
The classroom doors open at 8.45am - 8.55am.
Totalling 31 hours of school a week (including breaks and lunchtime)
Why is it important for children not to miss school?
Children only get one chance at school. If they do not attend school regularly they may not be able to keep up with their school work or could miss whole sections of the curriculum.
Pupils whose attendance is good - over 95%:
- Understand lessons better
- Achieve better results
- Sustain friendships
- Have good self-esteem, are positive and confident
- Get better jobs in the future
Pupils whose attendance is unsatisfactory below 90%:
- Don’t understand lessons so well
- Get behind with their work
- Find it difficult to maintain friendship groups
- Have low self-esteem and confidence
- Achieve less
At the end of every half term we will review attendance figures for each child, any child with attendance less than 92% for the half term will receive an attendance letter. If poor attendance continues, parents will be invited to a meeting with the Head of School and an attendance officer from Bradford Council. If this continues penalty notice fines will be issued.
What does good attendance mean at St John's?
- 100% attendance – when a pupil arrives on time and attends every lesson every day
- At our schools we expect all pupils to achieve 97% or above
What does unsatisfactory attendance mean?
- Less than 95% attendance. This will have a serious effect on learning
- One half day’s absence every week will give 90% attendance – this is poor
- Continual lateness
- Research suggests that days missed from school often equates to one level lower in academic attainment.
What happens if my child is absent?
If no phone call is received by 9am, contact will be made to parents/ carers by telephone or text message to find out why the child is not in school and a record will be kept that this phone call has been made. If the parent/ carers telephone numbers are unavailable, a home visit may be needed if we have concerns.
If your child is absent for more than 1 day, we expect this to be reported via message or phone call every single day. If we do not receive this the absence will be marked as unauthorised.
If no response is forthcoming after 3 days, a representative from the school will visit the home.
If by the second week the child has not been seen and parent/s carers have not made contact either, the school will contact the Education Welfare office to alert them that they have a child missing from school.
What happens if my child is persistently late or absent from school?
Children are expected to be in school for registration time. Any child arriving after this time, should enter the school via the Main Reception and if accompanied, should give a reason for the lateness, this will be recorded in the register as present but late.
Pupils who are consistently late are disrupting not only their own education but also that of others.
Where there is cause for concern, letters will be sent to the parents/ carers of the child to alert them to the concern. If attendance does not improve, an appointment for the parents/carers to meet the Head teacher will be sent. At this meeting a Parenting contract will be completed and a target set for improved attendance.
The regulations allow Head Teachers to sanction absence in “exceptional circumstances”. Please find below a list of allowable absences and those which will now be classed as unauthorised absences. The list is not exhaustive:
Allowed absence
- Sickness with evidence after 3 days - if medical evidence is not provided, your child's absence will be marked as unauthorised.
- Emergency medical appointments
- Day/s for specific religious observance
- School is closed due to unforeseen circumstances
The following list shows allowed absence in exceptional circumstances (these may be authorised at the discretion of the Head Teacher)
- Bereavement
- Compassionate grounds
- Examinations off site
Absences not allowed under any circumstances
- Planned medical check-ups – dental checks, eye appointments etc.
- Family holidays, no matter what length
- Days out / birthday days
We believe that the majority of our parents realise that ‘every lesson counts’ and encourage regular attendance at school. We have high expectations of our children. You have high expectations of us. These expectations cannot be met if your child is absent.
