Attendance
At Ramsey Academy, we strongly believe that good attendance and punctuality are essential for all students if they are to succeed at school.
Support from parent/guardians/carers is essential. Preventing lateness and avoiding medical/dental appointments during the school day are examples of where your support can have a direct impact on your child’s learning opportunities.
A student with attendance below 90% is classed as a persistent absentee regardless of whether the school has authorised or unauthorised the absence. A student who has attendance of 90% in an academic year are absent from school for the equivalent of half a day a week. If a student has 90% attendance all through their time at school, then this is the equivalent of missing half a year of schooling.
Minor ailments, such as a slight cold, are not acceptable reasons for failing to attend school. Repeated absences may require the school to request that you obtain medical evidence from your doctor’s surgery or local pharmacy.
We would also remind parent/guardians that the law does not give any entitlement to parents to remove their child from school during term time for the purpose of a holiday. Headteachers may only grant leave of absence where an application has been made in advance and the Headteacher considers that there are exceptional circumstances relating to the application.
Absence procedures
- Tutor time starts at 8.30 a.m. Any student arriving after 8.30 a.m. needs to go to student services to sign in.
- If we feel that attendance is a concern, then we will contact you by phone or in writing. We may also invite you to an attendance meeting so we can all work together to improve attendance.
- We work closely with the Local Authority and may make referrals if attendance continues to be a concern.
Please contact the school if you have any questions. We believe that school and home need to work together to improve attendance so please contact the school if you have concerns about your child's attendance.
Who to Contact
Attendance
School Absence Line: 01787 472481
School Absence email: Attendance@ramseyacademy.com
School Attendance Office: Mrs N Merry-Lidbury
If Your Child Will Be Absent
You are required to inform the school that your child will be absent before 8.30am on the first day of absence, and any subsequent days thereafter. You must provide a reason for the absence, however, we may require a medical certificate to justify frequent or extensive absences.
Please provide specific symptoms to allow us to monitor absences accurately.
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Telephone |
01787 472481 |
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Attendance@ramseyacademy.com |
If we are not informed of your child's absence, we will contact you in order to ensure their safety and confirm their reason for being absent.
If we do not receive an explanation your child's absence, or if the explanation is unsatisfactory, we may not authorise the absence and will mark this on your child’s attendance report. This is to ensure that sickness absence is not misused, and to promote attendance levels for all students.
Please note that we do not hold a policy whereby a pupil must be clear of sickness symptoms for 48 hours before returning to school. If your child is feeling well enough to come into school, they are welcome to return before the 48 hour window has passed
Leaving During The School Day
If possible, appointments (including medical, dental, and optician) should be made out of school hours or during the school holidays. Where this cannot be arranged, we ask that the student is out of school for the minimum amount of time possible.
Students who need to leave school during normal school hours for an appointment must sign out at Student Services, where they will be expected to show an appointment card or a letter from you. Students should also sign in again on return. Please can you also contact the school in advance so we are aware of the absence.
Term-Time Holiday Applications
There is no entitlement to parents to take their child out of school during term-time, however, you may apply to the school for leave of absence if you believe there are exceptional circumstances.
Leave of absence may only be granted by the Executive Headteacher or Attendance Officer. Leave of absence may only be granted where an advanced application has been made by the parent with whom the pupil normally resides, and the school considers that there are exceptional circumstances relating to the application.
If the absence is not authorised and the holiday is taken, the case will be referred to the Local Authority who may issue a Penalty Notice for £160 (or £80 if paid within 21 days) to each parent for each child taken out of school.
Please contact office@ramseyacademy.com if you have any questions about term-time holidays
