Absence & Attendance

At Wildern it is our belief that students with a high level of school attendance are more likely to enjoy learning, achieve better examination results and are less likely to miss out on the myriad of opportunities afforded to them.

Students with good school attendance are more likely to benefit from education, achieve better examination results and go on to have more successful careers. Similarly, irregular or poor attendance at school can lead to students underachieving and underperforming in examinations and, therefore, will have a detrimental effect upon their careers.

Absence from school can be disruptive not only for the individual student but also for the student's whole class.  Absences should be kept to a minimum. 

The School does not support taking a holiday in term time.  Parents are strongly requested to avoid taking holidays in term time. If this is absolutely unavoidable, a ‘Request to authorise absence from school due to exceptional circumstances’ form must be completed. The completed form should be received at least a week before the period for which you are seeking authorisation. The completed form setting out your reasons must be returned to Reception.

Below is an illustration of how absence adversely affects learning:

Attendance during one school year	Equates to days absent	Which is approximately	Which means the number of lessons missed
94%	10 days	2 weeks	50 lessons
90%	19 days	4 weeks	100 lessons
85%	29 days	6 weeks	150 lessons
80%	38 days	8 weeks	200 lessons
75%	48 days	10 weeks	250 lessons
70%	57 days	11.5 weeks	285 lessons
65%	67 days	13.5 weeks	335 lessons

All students should be reported ill by their parents on the first day of absence followed by a written explanation on their return that is given to their tutor. Parents must call in EVERYDAY that their child is absent.

In the event of problems relating to attendance, the Director of Progress and Achievement (DOPA) and Head of Student Services will begin to work with both student and parent(s) to formalise an appropriate action plan. The Head of Student Services will also meet with members of the pastoral team on a fortnightly basis to monitor all students’ punctuality and attendance.

When a student’s attendance falls below 95% the following actions will ensue:

• Stage 0 - Letter home advising Parents/Guardian that their child's attendance has dropped below 95%
• Stage 1 – Letter home notifying Parent/Guardian that their child’s attendance has dropped below 95% and is a concern
• Stage 2 – Formal letter from school expressing our continued concern that a student’s attendance has not improved
• Stage 3 – Formal letter requiring that a Parent/Guardian provides medical evidence to support absence related to illness and advising that absences will be unauthorised unless evidence is provided
• Stage 4 – Parent/Guardians invited for a formal meeting at the school  - Penalty Warning given.
• Stage 4a - Formal letter sent if Parent/Guardian fails to attend a formal Stage 4 meeting on two consecutive occasions. Letter advises that a FPN or Legal Team referral will be made if attendance does not improve
• Stage 5 – Formal letter to Parent/Guardians advising that a referral has been made to the Attendance Legal Panel or Fixed Penalty Notice given.

At every stage it is imperative that Parent/Guardians ensure that there are good lines of communication with the school.  The School will endeavour to support, advise and provide strategies for Parent/Guardians who are willing to engage.

Concerns for a students absence from school may well trigger attendance concern that could include informing the Local Authority that a student is a child missing in education.  The school responds to a student missing from school without notice by making contact with parents, following up with letters and a home visit before informing the authority that no contact has been established.  

Please can we ask that when you are reporting a student absence that you email absence@wildern.org or use the report absence feature within the parent app Insight, it can be found on the attendance menu.