Being in school and having the best attendance possible underpins all the many benefits of school for your child. This is not just their learning, but for wellbeing and their wider development, such as making and maintaining friendships and communication skills.
We understand that for some children, attending school every day will be hard and this is why we are committed to working together with you to support your child’s attendance. Schools and parents/carers have a shared responsibility to ensure that students attend school regularly.
Parents’/Carers’ responsibilities
As a parent you are legally responsible for making sure your child gets a suitable education. This will mean making sure your child is in school every day except when:
- Your child is too ill to go to school
- You have permission for a leave of absence. This should only be in exceptional circumstances
- Religious observance
- Local council transport issue
Whilst we understand some absence is unavoidable, it is important that your child is in school every day they can be.
What do I need to do if my child needs to be absent from school?
- For illness, contact the school as early as possible on the first day of absence to explain why, preferably before 9am – 01438 747274 (24hr voicemail) or admin@thevalley.herts.sch.uk
- For medical and dental appointments that cannot take place outside of the school day, please complete the Leave of Absence form (click on the link below or ask for a hard copy from the main office). Please collect your child as close to the appointment time as possible and return them to school for the rest of the school day
In cases where your child is regularly absent through illness, medical evidence may be asked for to assess how we can help by putting the right reasonable adjustments in place.
Headteachers may not authorise any leave of absence for term time holidays. Any leave of absence will be considered on an individual basis, taking into account exceptional circumstances and the context behind each request.
Schools’ responsibilities
As a school, we are committed to working with you and your child to support your child attending school. We understand that there will be times when students do not feel emotionally able to attend school and in these circumstances we will work alongside parents/carers, the student and other agencies to ensure your child has access to the right support and recognises school as a safe space.
If we are concerned the following steps will be taken:
- A welfare call from the form tutor
- If necessary an attendance support plan will be in place that has been co-produced
- Support from the Family Engagement and Therapies Lead
- Referrals to relevant external agencies
Children and young people who don’t attend school regularly will be at risk of not achieving their full potential.
Amber is considered to be an ‘at risk’ zone. If your child is in either of these zones we will have made contact and will be working with you to improve your child’s attendance.
If your child is in the Red zone the Attendance Officer will be aware and attendance will be closely monitored, with an agreed support plan in place.
At The Valley School we work closely with the Statutory Attendance and Participation Team, with regular visits from our Attendance Officer. Parents/carers of children with poor attendance could be issued a fixed penalty notice in line with the regulations stipulated by Hertfordshire County Council.
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If you are experiencing any difficulties with your child’s attendance please do not hesitate to contact the attendance team on attendance@thevalley.herts.sch.uk
