St. Mary's Catholic Primary School

Attendance Policy

Our School Day:

The School Day from September

The Government has rightly set a standard for all schools to have 32.5 hours in every school week. To fully achieve this, pupils need to be in school from 8.30am.

School gates and doors will open at 8.30am for all year groups.
All children will be expected to be in their classroom by 8.45am.
The register will be taken at 9am and will remain open for 15 minutes.
Pupils arriving after 9am but before 9.15am will be marked as late before the register closed.
Pupils not in school by 9.15am will be recorded as absent.
Mrs Concannon will contact parents regarding any punctuality or attendance concerns.
Our attendance target will continue to be 96% of the school year.
96% means missing no more than 7 school days no matter what the reasons are. To ensure children receive the best possible education, punctuality and good attendance are both vital.

Lunch times will continue as normal with Key stage two 12:15pm-1pm and Key stage one 12:00pm-1pm.

Thank you for your support in ensuring your children are at school on time and attend school every day unless illness prevents them.

Please find the updated Attendance Policy below.

ATTENDANCE – WHAT DO YOU WANT FOR YOUR CHILD?

Above 96%

Excellent! A pupil with attendance of 96%+ is more likely to be successful in school and

reach their full potential. You are giving your child the very best opportunity to succeed in school.

90-95%

Even with an attendance level of 95%, up to 60 lessons could have been missed. A pupil with an attendance of 90% at the end of the school year will have missed 4 weeks’ worth of

school. Please monitor your child’s attendance carefully.

Below 90%

An attendance of 85% is 6 weeks of education missed over the year. Pupils are at serious risk of falling behind. Pupils below 85% are missing a substantial amount of school, more than a half term of absence, having a serious impact on their ability to reach their full

potential. Individual pupils will be identified by the Department of Education as a persistent absentee. Attendance will be monitored.