We want every child who comes to Esgob Morgan to be happy and feel like they belong to our school family. In order to achieve this pupils need to attend school as often as they can. We need, though, a sensible and appropriate approach.
Why does every day attendance matter? Well… here is some data.

• Half a day off in a week = 90% attendance
•  1 day off in a week = 80% attendance
•  One and a half days off in a week = 70% attendance
• 2 days off in a week = 60% attendance

Poor attendance can have a negative impact on your child’s self-esteem and friendship groups. Your child can not progress through the curriculum and make achievements against this curriculum if they are not here. However, there are times when attendance is not possible. We put these into 2 categories. Authorised and unauthorised.

Authorised absence

If your child is unwell we would expect you to make the judgement as to whether they would be well enough to attend school. If they are unable to attend school then they will have an “I” recorded to signify they are off ill. We can also give a recording of “M” for a medical appointment. However, we kindly ask, where possible, that all medical and dental appointment are made after school hours or during school holidays. We would expect, again where possible, pupils to be able to come to school before and after their appointments.

We do like to help where ever possible and so if your child has more than 10 days (20 sessions) absence we may contact you to see if there is anything we can do as a school to help you.

It is possible to request leave for your child for holidays. After all, travel broadens the mind. The decision as to whether the absence can be authorised lies solely with the head teacher. You are able to request up to 10 days absence which must be done in writing and addressed to the Head teacher. The Head Teacher will then assess each case on its own merits and report back to you with a Governing Body approved form detailing as to the reasons why the request has been approved, or indeed, unapproved.There are other circumstances where absence may be approved, some of which will not affect attendance, such as Educational and/or residential visits, educated off site etc…

Unauthorised

If a child does not attend school and we do not receive notification as to why from out text, phone call or letter we send, then it shall be recorded as unauthorised. Late after registration is also counted as an unauthorised absence. Any incident of 10 sessions missed through unauthorised absence will be investigated by the school and may result in a referral to the education social work team.

Punctuality

•  5 mins every day = 3 days lost over the year
• 15 mins every day = 2 weeks lost over the year
•  30 mins late every day = 19 days lost over the year

Our school day starts at 9am. It is advisable to have your child in school for 8:45am. If you need to drop your child off earlier we have a breakfast club which they are able to attend. Lateness can add up to a lot of lost learning. Besides which, children really hate being late for school. It can make them anxious and upset about attending school. If you have problems in getting your child to school on time you must let the Head Teacher know as soon as possible.

I hope this helps you understand why attendance and punctuality is important to us at Ysgol Esgob Morgan – but more importantly why it is important for you children.