Attendance

Your child’s attendance is extremely important because it is directly linked to their progress. Oldham Council expects all students to achieve an attendance level of at least 95% in every school year which equates to around nine days (or nearly two weeks) therefore it is imperative that absences are kept to an absolute minimum.

The information below tells you what you should do if your child is absent from school:

Absence Procedure

If your child is going to be absent from school you must inform the school office before 9.30am on 0161 770 5350. If your child's absence is not reported to us then it will be recorded as unauthorised. If you know in advance that your child is going to be absent from school, please inform the office as soon as you can.

Examples of authorised absences:

• hospital or orthodontist appointment (evidence required - see below for examples)
• emergency doctor or dentist appointment - routine appointments must be made outside of school hours
• funeral (one day only)
• reported illness - the school may ask for medical evidence

Please note that medication can be held and administered in school so that your child can still be in attendance. Please refer to our Administration of Medication in School policy for more details.

Types of medical evidence (this must be taken to the school office):

• Medical appointment card / letter
• Copy of prescription showing name and date.
• Prescribed medication with pharmacist label showing name and date.
• Unfit for school declaration from GP.
• Hospital discharge letter.

Examples of unauthorised absences:

• leave of absence not approved by the school i.e. holiday requests
• absence NOT reported on the day or explained upon return to school.
• arriving late after registers have closed.
• truancy
• routine doctor or dentist appointments

Leave of absence

From 1st September 2013, the law does not allow parents to take their child out of school during term time. Any activity, holiday or event should be arranged during the school holidays. If you take your child out of school without permission during term time then the Local Authority will be informed and you will receive a Penalty Notice. This costs £60 per child, per parent if paid within 21 days increasing to £120 per child, per parent if paid between 22 and 28 days.

Attendance Incentives

Any child who has over 97% attendance in a full term (either September to December, January to Easter or the final Summer term) will receive a bronze award.

- Any child who has over 97% attendance for 2 terms will receive a silver award.

- Any child who has over 97% attendance for the whole school year will receive a gold award.

The awards

Children with over 97% attendance in any term will receive a bronze, silver or gold star pin badge to wear on their school jumpers as well a special certificate. They will also be invited to attend a special event, which may be a special trip or an event in school three times a year for anyone with excellent attendance in a term. We will also invite parents of these children into school to attend a special assembly to see their children receive their awards.

Some of the treats that our excellent attendance winners have be rewarded with so far include a visit from an ice cream van, a chocolate tea party and a movie afternoon. 

If a child has excellent attendance and receives a bronze pin badge after 1 term then goes on to get 100% attendance for a second term, they will also receive a silver badge. If they do not have excellent attendance during the second term, they may keep wearing their bronze pin badge. It is hoped that children will collect bronze, silver and gold pin badges over the years.

If a child is going to be presented with a bronze, silver or gold attendance award, parents will be contacted by school and invited into assembly.

Why is as close to 100% attendance as possible so important?

Research is increasingly showing that attendance at all ages is incredibly important and is directly related to student success. According to a recent study, it was found that when students are absent during primary school they perform lower academically in both primary and secondary school. This is true regardless of gender or ethnicity. To give your children the very best start to life it is crucial that they attend school every day.