Attendance Management Team

Keeping Children Safe in Education

Pastoral Leadership Team

As well as all of the general support below, we are, of course here to help. Should students have any concerns when they are in school, they should speak to their form tutor in the first instance where possible.  Alternatively, Pastoral Managers, or any adult with whom they feel comfortable in school. All staff have regular child protection training and staff with particular training or an affinity to support mental students wellbeing have chosen to wear a purple lanyard.

Henley-in-Arden School is dedicated to working with students and their families to secure excellent punctuality and attendance. We believe that regular school attendance is the key to enabling young people to maximise the educational opportunities available to them and become emotionally resilient, confident and competent adults.

Every day a student misses school, a total of five hours of learning is lost and whilst we understand that illness can’t always be avoided, just a few days of absence can have a huge impact on a student’s attendance figure and their education as a whole. Whilst the national average for attendance if affected by COVID our school target for each student remains 97%.

Henley-in-Arden School seeks to ensure that all its pupils receive a full-time education which maximises opportunities for each pupil to realise his/her true potential. All school staff will work with pupils and their families to ensure each pupil attends school regularly and punctually.

Absence

To help the school ensure your child is safe, please ensure that you and your child keep to the following procedures:

When illness means your child needs to stay at home, we would be grateful if you would phone the school on 01564 792364 by 8.30 a.m. on the first day of absence. A note of your child’s tutor group would be very helpful. Henley-in-Arden School operates a first day of absence calling where contact may be made through a nominated provider for unreported absence.

The School day starts at 8.40am when the registration bell sounds. All students are expected to be in their designated area for registration. Students arriving in school after 8.50am are expected to enter through the main reception and their late reported in the ‘late book’.

If your child needs to leave school for any reason he/she must sign out at reception with written permission from the parent/carer.

If you wish your child to go home for lunch, they must obtain and complete a lunch time pass application form. PLEASE NOTE that permission to leave school at lunchtime is given on the strict understanding that pupils go to their own home, or to the address given on the lunch time pass application form, where both parent and the authorised adult have signed to accept responsibility.

Under no circumstances are pupils allowed to wander around the village during the lunch break.

Holiday requests in Term Time

There is a common misconception that any pupil is allowed to take 10 days holiday per academic year in term time. This is not true. Parents are not entitled to remove children from school for holidays as of right.

The Department for Education expect us to discourage such practice as it can lead to problems for all concerned:

– Your child’s education suffers;

– Lessons and extra-curricular activities are missed;

– Continuity of project work is lost;

– There is often no opportunity for teachers to set additional work or to assist a child in catching up on their return from holiday;

– The class is generally disrupted; other pupils suffer as a result;

– You will be in breach of your legal obligation to send your child to school.

Government has brought in guidance tightening up the regulations related to pupils taking time off in term-time. These rules came into force on 1 September 2013. Head Teachers are no longer permitted to authorise absence for holidays taken during term time. They are permitted to grant leave only in very exceptional circumstances. If you think you have exceptional circumstances, which will not include family holidays, please talk to us without delay and before arrangements are entered into or money committed.

If exceptional circumstances are accepted, the Head Teacher will determine how much absence will be authorised.​ Unauthorised absence can lead to fixed-penalty notices being issued by the local authority. These are currently charged at £120 to each parent or carer within the household.

 LEAVE OF ABSENCE DURING TERM TIME

UPDATED INFORMATION FOR PARENTS

The Supreme Court recently reached a decision in the case of Platt v Isle of Wight Council which has clarified the law on unauthorised leave, including holidays, during term time. The parents of children of compulsory school age are required to ensure that they attend school on a regular basis. The Supreme Court has made clear that attending school ‘regularly’ means that the children must attend school on every day that they are required to do so. As such, the parents of any child who is absent from school without authorisation for any length of time are likely to be considered as committing an offence under s444 of the Education Act 1996.

Head Teachers retain the ability to authorise leave in accordance with the Education (Pupil Registration) (England) Regulations 2006. When considering such requests for a leave of absence, the school are obliged to act within the law. Head Teachers may not grant any leave of absence during term time unless there are exceptional circumstances relating to the application. If the leave is granted, head teachers are able to determine the number of school days a child can be absent for.

It is for the Head Teacher to decide what is ‘exceptional’ and it is at their discretion if the circumstances warrant the leave to be granted. The school can only consider Leave of Absence requests which are made by the ‘resident’ parent.

Each application for a leave of absence will be considered on a case by case basis and on its own merits.

Where applications for leave of absence are made in advance and refused, the child will be required to be in school on the dates set out in the application. If the child is absent during that period, it will be recorded as an unauthorised absence, which may result in legal action being taken against the parent(s), by way of a Fixed Penalty Notice.

Failure to make an application for leave in advance can also result in a Fixed Penalty Notice being issued to the parent(s).

All matters of unauthorised absence relating to a Leave of Absence will be referred to the Warwickshire Attendance Service, part of Warwickshire County Council

It is important to note, Fixed Penalty Notices are issued to each parent of each absent child, (for example 2 children and 2 parents, means each parent will receive 2 invoices in the amount of £120 each, totalling £240 for both children, this is reduced to £60 per child if paid within 21 days).

Where a Fixed Penalty Notice is not paid within the required timeframe as set out on the notice, the matter will be referred to Warwickshire County Council’s Legal Services to consider instigating criminal proceedings under S444 Education Act 1996.

Fixed Penalty Notices are issued in accordance with Warwickshire County Council’s Code of Conduct for Penalty Notices.

Your child’s progress academically as well as socially is our shared priority