Attendance
Full attendance maximises the opportunities for inclusion and achievement at school so that every pupil is able to realise their full potential. Pupils, parents and carers, teachers, support staff and governors all have a role in maintaining a high standard of attendance and punctuality.
At St James Primary School, we have developed a systematic approach to gathering, analysing and responding to attendance data in order to improve the overall attendance of our children to the best it can be. While we recognise that illness happens to every child at some time or other – we aim to have a 96% attendance record for every class every term.
If your child is unwell or has a medical or dental appointment, please inform us by email as soon as you are able. Parents or carers of children who are absent from school without an explanation will be emailed at 9.30am to inform them of the unauthorised abscence and requesting more information.
For more information on attendance and how to make every moment at St James Primary count, please click here.
Absence During Term Time
Please take serious consideration before you take your child out of school during term time.
· Holidays in term time are not permitted and will not be authorised.
· Please also note that schools are instructed to remove pupils from registers if they do not return by the date stated.
Lack of continuity in your child’s education will affect their academic progress. Before a decision is made, your child’s academic progress and attendance level will be taken into consideration. The absence may be recorded as unauthorised in accordance with advice given by the DfE and the London Borough of Haringey. The 2013 regulation amendments make clear that schools may not grant any leave of absence (holiday) during term time unless there are exceptional circumstances. Parents have no entitlement to take their child out of school for a holiday in term time. All requests will be considered individually and the Head of School will decide whether they consider the reasons for leave as exceptional circumstances
To request exceptional leave during term time, please complete the form here and email or hand in to the School office and our Head of School will respond.
Authorised/Unauthorised Absence
The new guidelines also state that if a child is away for more than 10 days unauthorised leave in a school year, the school must pass on their details to the Local Authority who will decide on a course of action. This may include a fine per child per day.
Punctuality
Our gates are open from 8.45am and registers are close at 9am. If your child arrives after this time, they will be marked as 'late'. It is very important that children arrive in plenty of time for the start of school, so they can enter with their classmates, greet their friends, settle themselves for the day and receive any instructions from their teacher about the timetable for the day.
Assembly starts every morning at 9am so children arriving after this time will be asked to go straight into the school hall. Children who are continually late, may be asked to make up the learning time missed in a break or lunchtime. Punctuality is a priority for us and we will monitor it closely.
