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ATTENDANCE

“As a Church of England academy you have developed a distinctive ethos, rich in Christian values.”

Investors in People

THE IMPORTANCE OF ATTENDANCE

Regular school attendance, which is defined as attending every day that the school is open, leads to better outcomes. Attending school also improves the life chances of a child, by giving them opportunities to develop socially, morally and spiritually. It is key that we have a positive relationship between school and parents/guardians, to enable our pupils to succeed and reach their full potential.

We look forward to working in partnership with you to improve the school attendance.

Stage Impact on learning Percentage over an academic year
0 Regular Attendance =
secured learning opportunities		 100%
0 Regular Attendance =
secured learning opportunities		 97 – 99.9%
1 95% – 9 days absence =
36 lessons missed		 95 – 96.9%
2 94% – 11 days absence =
44 lessons missed		 93 – 94.9%
3 93% – 13 days absence =
52 lessons missed
92% – 15 days absence =
60 lessons missed
91% – 17 days absence =
68 lessons missed
DfE states at this point, 1 grade is dropped 		90 – 92.9%
4 90% – 19 days absence =
76 lessons missed
85% – 29 days absence =
116 lessons missed
80% – 38 days absence =
152 lessons missed
DfE states at this point, 2 grades are dropped 		Below 90%
Information and Guidance for Parents

Woodchurch High School has an Attendance Team which consists of:

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Mr P Smith – Attendance Improvement Lead

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Mrs E Jones – Deputy Attendance Improvement Lead

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Miss L Malam – Attendance Officer

Please contact us if you have any concerns or need support.

In addition to this, you can also speak to your child’s Pupil Progress Leader or Assistant Pupil Progress Leader.

attendance@woodchurchhigh.com

Reporting an Absence

Parents/carers should phone school each day by 8.45am, unless the pupil has been advised to remain off school, for a specific period of time. Where this is the case, medical evidence should be provided, so the absence can be authorised. If we do not hear from you, Woodchurch High School will make daily contact via text message or if parents/carers have the app they will get a notification via the app.

attendance@woodchurchhigh.com

Absences can also be reported via email (above) and include the following information:

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Pupil name

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Tutor Group

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Reason for absence

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Possible length of time the pupil will be out of school

Leave of Absence

Leave of Absence during term time, will only be granted in exceptional circumstances. Holidays are not exceptional circumstances and will not be authorised. If you need to apply for Leave of Absence, please ask your son/daughter to request an application for leave during term time, which you can complete via the below link or collect from school. To allow the school the necessary processing time this must be done at least four weeks before your requested time off.

Any period of leave taken without the agreement of the school, or in excess of that agreed, will be classed as unauthorised and may attract sanctions such as an Education Penalty Notice.

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Leave of Absence 2024/25

Please use the following link for Leave of Absence during 2024/25 academic year

Attendance Support

When a pupil is between 90 – 93% attendance, parents / carers may be invited in for a supportive meeting to see how the school can help remove barriers and improve attendance. This initial meeting will be with either the Pupil Progress Leader or assistant Pupil Progress Leader. When a pupil falls below 90% attendance, this is classed as persistently absent and is a cause for concern. At this point parents will be invited in to meet with the school attendance lead and the locality attendance officer from the local authority. Our aim as a school is to always support our parents / carers but when we are not seeing improvement or have genuine evidence for an absence, we may request an educational penalty notice.

Punctuality

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All pupils are expected to be at school for 8.45am

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Any pupil who arrives between 8.45am and 9.20am, will be marked with a L (Late) code

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Any pupil who arrives after 9.20am, will be marked with a U (after registration closure) code

*Please note that 10 combined sessions of O (unauthorised absence) and U (after registration closure) may result in an educational penalty notice.