At Haughton St. Giles our whole school attendance is regularly above the Government target of 96% for Primary schools. We place a high focus on attendance because we know that children who attend school regularly make better progress than those who don’t. You can find the latest Department of Education guidance for schools here:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/working-together-to-improve-school-attendance

Absence Procedure for Parents and Carers

We understand that children may need to be absent from school from time to time. To help us keep all pupils safe, healthy, and supported, please follow the procedures below when reporting an absence.

 

Reporting Your Child’s Absence

Parents and carers must call or email the school office on the morning of any absence.
Please include:

• Your child’s name and class

• The reason for the absence

• Any symptoms, as we are required to monitor viral illnesses

This information allows us to record the absence accurately on our system.
If your child continues to be absent, we ask that you update the school daily.

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If we do not receive notification of an absence, the school will contact you to establish the reason.
In some cases, a welfare visit may be carried out by the Headteacher or our Education Welfare Officer (EWO) to ensure your child’s safety.

 

Late Arrival

If your child will be arriving after 9am, we ask that you call and inform school of the reason for this, so we are aware as to when we should expect them in school. ​If your child is not in school for morning registration but will be returning to school for lunch, please ensure that you inform the office of your child’s lunch preference and/or meal choice.

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Sickness and Illness

For sickness-related illnesses (such as vomiting or diarrhoea), children must remain at home for 48 hours after the last episode. This helps prevent the spread of illness within school.

 

If a child becomes unwell while at school, staff will always do their best to monitor them and keep them in school where appropriate.
However, if it becomes clear that they are too unwell to remain in school, we will contact families using the priority contact list provided to us, so that arrangements can be made for early collection.

To ensure we can reach you quickly when needed, we ask parents and carers to keep the school informed of any changes to contact numbers or emergency contacts.

 

Attendance Monitoring

We closely monitor attendance throughout the year.
If your child’s attendance drops below 95%, you will be contacted so that we can work together to improve this, including offering any support the school can provide.

 

Medical Appointments

Where possible, medical appointments should be arranged outside the school day.
Routine appointments taken during school hours may be recorded as unauthorised.

 

Absence Requests

Requests for term‑time holidays must be made using the school’s Absence Request Form, available from the school office.

Each request is reviewed by the Headteacher in line with statutory criteria.
If the absence is not authorised, the case may be referred to the County Council, who may issue a penalty notice.