Attendance

Why school attendance is important

Learners need to attend school regularly to benefit from their education.

Missing out on lessons leaves learners vulnerable to falling behind, both academically and socially. This impacts on their emotional wellbeing and creates further barriers to learning.

The government expects schools and local authorities to:

• promote good attendance and reduce absence, including persistent absence

• ensure every learner has access to full-time education to which they are entitled

• ensure the safeguarding of learners and

• act early to address patterns of absence

The government expects parent and carers to:

• perform their legal duty by ensuring their children attend school regularly

The government expects all learners:

• to be on time for their lessons

At Ringmer Primary and Nursery School we expect children's attendance to be 98% or above. When attendance drops below 95% we will work with families and provide support and advice on how to improve attendance. Further information can be found in our Attendance Policy below.

Government guidelines require school attendance of above 90%.

Good school attendance is central to raising standards in education and ensuring the safeguarding of learners.

When school attendance drops below 90%, the school and the local authority can help to identify the reasons for absence.

There can be many reasons for low attendance, and these can be complex. When we know the reasons, we can work with the student to put together an effective support plan.

Withdrawal from Learning

If you wish to withdraw your child from school for any reason you must complete a Withdrawal from Learning form and send it into school.

The following are not considered to be exceptional circumstances and are likely to be rejected and unauthorised:

• Trips to visit family/friends

• Your child’s birthday 

• Cheaper family holidays

• Tickets to sports/culture events

The form will be reviewed and returned to you with the decision regarding whether or not the absence will be authorised or unauthorised. If the absence is more than 10 sessions (each day is two sessions - am and pm) then the form will also state whether a penalty notice will be issued.

If you do not inform the school before withdrawing your child from learning, or if the school has reason to believe that you have taken your child away without informing us, you will be asked to complete this form on your return. 

Education Penalty Notices

A penalty notice is a fine for parents or carers who don’t ensure that their child goes to school. The fine is £160 per parent per child. If you pay within 21 days, this is reduced to £80 per parent per child. 

• You must pay within 28 days to avoid prosecution and a criminal record

• You cannot pay in instalments

• You can pay with a debit or credit card

A second penalty notice in a 3 year period will be £160 per parent per child with no reductions for early payment.

A third penalty notice will not be issued within a 3-year period. Therefore, in cases where the threshold is met for a third (or subsequent) times within those 3 years, a penalty notice cannot be issued, and alternative action will be taken instead. This will often include considering prosecution but may include other tools such as one of the other attendance legal interventions.

Reasons for penalty notices

• Holidays in term time – 10 sessions (5 school days) or more

• Unauthorised absences – 10 sessions (5 school days) within 10 school weeks

• Unauthorised lateness – if a pupil arrives at school after the register has closed 10 times in 10 school weeks

• A combination of unauthorised absence and lateness

• An excluded pupil is in a public place without good reason during the school day

You will get a warning letter before you receive a penalty notice.

Ringmer Primary and Nursery School Attendance Policy

Our current attendance policy is below. If you have any questions please speak to the school office.