Attendance and Punctuality

Every child has the right to receive a full time education

Attendance expectations at Orchard View Primary Academy

We want all our pupils to have excellent attendance so they can benefit from the teaching, curriculum, wider experiences and social opportunities that we are providing.

We are acutely aware of the DfE statistics highlighting that pupils who achieve well are noted to have higher levels of attendance, compared to those who do not. We want all OVPA pupils to achieve to the best of their ability.

We are also aware that excellent attendance is a protective factor for pupils who are vulnerable.

We therefore expect parents to support regular attendance at our Academy for their child, except in exceptional circumstances, such as illness, which means that they are unable to safely attend school and medical appointments that cannot be scheduled outside of school time.

The DfE have created this guide for parents: 

When is a child is too unwell for school?

This can be a difficult decision to make. With some illnesses it is very clear. However, with general coughs, colds and viruses it can be more complicated. A good guide is that if they are struggling to stay awake or are running a temperature, they should be staying at home. Otherwise, send them to the academy and we will contact you if they are struggling.

There is some guidance here from the NHS which clearly outlines when children should be kept off school for particular conditions: NHS: Is my child too ill for school?

The most common illnesses that you may want information on are listed below:

• Vomiting or diarrhoea- your child must stay at home until 48 hours have passed since the last incident.
• Chicken pox- your child must stay at home until the spots have started to scab over. 
• Headlice- children can attend but should be treated as soon as possible.
• Covid- three days' absence is recommended by the NHS.
• Conjunctivitis- children can attend but should be treated as soon as possible

Attendance for pupils with Medical Conditions or Disabilities

We understand that some pupils will have lower attendance rates due to medical conditions (including mental health) or disabilities requiring regular treatment or medical appointments and that some of these pupils will also have more days when they are too unwell to attend school. We endeavour to work closely with these families to support regular attendance and get the best outcomes for the child, providing any reasonable adjustments that may be needed.  In cases where parents are telling us that low attendance is related to a medical need, we will contact the GP practice for confirmation. We may ask to contact Bucks School Nursing Team for advice.

Monitoring Attendance & Punctuality

The attendance and punctuality of our pupils is regularly monitored. Registers are taken at 8.50am and after lunch daily. Any absence should be reported to the office by parents before 9am.  

Reporting absence-

• call 01296 254042 (leave a message)
• email absence@ovpa.school - ensure you include your child's full name

We will send a text to parents to request information about their child's absence, if we have not received a notification. This allows us to ensure that pupils are safe and that parents are aware that their child is not in school.

The overall attendance in the academy and the individual attendance of pupils is regularly monitored by staff:

• Mrs L Jones - Head of Academy

What does our academy do regarding attendance?

• We provide 190 days of planned curriculum delivery – not a day should be missed
• We monitor attendance regularly
• We work with parents and families where attendance is becoming a concern
• We report levels of academy attendance to Academy Trustees and educational bodies such as the DfE and the Local Authority, or Bucks Safeguarding team if we feel the absence may indicate a safeguarding concern
• We aim to achieve an academy attendance target of at least 97%, which is above the national average attendance in primary schools
• We refuse term-time holidays  
• We refer families for fines, if the threshold is met

What can you do to help and support your child with attendance?

• Report the absence of your child as early as possible on the first day of absence
• Ensure that your child is in for registration 
• Avoid taking holidays during term time
• Understand that the beginning and end of each term in the academy is as important as any other time
• Do not allow your child time away from the academy unless it is absolutely necessary
• Encourage a pattern of punctuality and good attendance with your child – let them see that it matters- this sets them up for their future
• When one of your children is off make sure that you get the others to the academy
• Take notice of how much time your child has been away from the academy
• Let us know if you are about to leave the area, need to change your address or any of your contact numbers. Ensure that we always have up-to-date contact information- please do this via Arbor.
• Arrange dentist and routine appointments outside of academy hours

 What can we do to help and support you?

We communicate individual attendance figures at Parents' Evenings and on your child's annual report. We phone and write to parents if we feel that absence is causing a concern or there is a persistent absence. Relationships with parents are very important to our Academy and the success of the pupils, and we will in the first instance try to work with parents where a pattern of poor attendance is emerging. This is in order to see if there are any barriers to attendance that we may be able to support with.

We work closely with Buckinghamshire Council on improving the attendance of pupils. Where a pupil has been identified as having persistent absence, we follow the Buckinghamshire guidance (see flow chart below). 

Talk to us! We are here to help. Please view our attendance policy, at the bottom of this page, for further information.

Punctuality - what if your child is late?

• They might feel self-conscious
• They will miss crucial learning at the beginning of the lesson
• They will miss the social part of the beginning of the day
• They may be reluctant or refuse to enter the classroom
• It causes disruption for all other class members

Term time holidays

The DfE are very clear that term-time holidays are not an acceptable reason for a child to be out of school. Their guidance states:

"You have to get permission from the head teacher if you want to take your child out of school during term time.

You can only do this if:

• you make an application to the head teacher in advance (as a parent the child normally lives with)
• there are exceptional circumstances

It’s up to the head teacher how many days your child can be away from school if leave is granted."

Requesting a planned absence in term time

In line with this guidance, any requests for a planned absence must be submitted prior to the absence using a form which can be collected from the academy office. It is extremely rare that any request for a term time holiday will be authorised by the Head of Academy. While we appreciate that holiday costs rise significantly during school breaks (as this is something that also affects our staff), this will not lead to an authorised request.

Fines for absence in term time

OVPA works with Buckinghamshire Council on term-time absence and refer unauthorised absences of more than 5 days for a fine.

From August 2024, the fine for school absences across the country will be £80 if paid within 21 days, or £160 if paid within 28 days. This rate is in line with inflation and is the first increase since 2012. In the case of repeated fines, if a parent receives a second fine for the same child within any three-year period, this will be charged at the higher rate of £160. 

Where there are extenuating circumstances, such as a death or a medical emergency, the Council may stop the fine if they receive relevant evidence. Such evidence must go directly to Buckinghamshire Council, rather than the academy, though we can forward it on to them on your behalf, should you wish.

The fines are applied and received by Buckinghamshire Council and the money does not come to the Academy.

Attendance Policy