Attendance
Report your child’s absence due to illness
Please use the MCAS app (Messages) or call the school office to report your child’s absence before 8:30am on the day of absence.
Children who are vomiting or have diarrhoea must be kept at home, and not return to school for a minimum of 48 hours after symptoms have stopped.
To report a future absence due to a medical or GP appointment, please email the school office at least 24hrs in advance, with the date and time of the appointment, and include a copy of the appointment letter/text message.
Please review our full Attendance and Punctuality procedures here.
Request for Exceptional Leave of Absence
If you need to take your child out of school due to exceptional circumstances, please complete the following form as far in advance as possible, and no later than 10 working days prior to the requested period of absence. This includes absences for religious observance, significant family events, or other important circumstances that may require a pupil to be absent from school during term time.
Stoughton Infant School – Leave of Absence Form
Northmead Junior School – Leave of Absence Form
Attendance & Punctuality
Regular school attendance is an important part of giving children the best possible start in life.
Why is it important for children not to miss school?
All parents want the best for their children and for them to get on well in life. Having a good education is important to ensure that they have the best opportunities in their adult life. They only get one chance at school, and your child’s future may be affected by not attending school or alternative provision regularly.
Why is punctuality so important?
Being on time is vital. Arriving late at school can be very disruptive for your child, their teacher and the other children in the class. It is important that children understand the importance of time keeping and being organised. There may be times when parents are finding it difficult to ensure that their child attends school regularly. If this is the case, it is important to talk to school as soon as possible.
If children do not attend school regularly, they may:
Struggle to keep up with schoolwork. In a busy school day, it is difficult for schools to find the extra time to help a child catch up. Miss out on the social side of school life. Poor attendance can affect children’s ability to make and keep friendships; a vital part of growing up. Setting good attendance patterns from an early age, from nursery through primary school, will also help your child later in their life. Children who have a poor school attendance record may have less chance of securing a job when they are adults.
What might the impact of poor attendance be on your child?
In primary schools less than 65% of children achieve good results in English and Maths with an average of 15 days absence a year compared to almost 90% where the average is less than 8 days. Parents can be very surprised at how quickly their children can accumulate 15 days absence within a year. Research has also shown that children who are not in school can become vulnerable. For example, children who play truant are more likely to be drawn into crime than those who do not.
What does the law say?
By law, all children of compulsory school age (between 5 and 16) must receive a suitable, full-time education. As a parent, you are responsible for making sure this happens. Once your child is registered at a school you are responsible for making sure he or she attends regularly. If your child fails to attend regularly – even if they miss school without you knowing – the Local Authority may take legal action against you.
What happens if your child does not attend school regularly?
Your child’s school is responsible by law for reporting poor attendance to the Local Authority. As a parent, you are committing an offence if you fail to make sure that your child attends school regularly. You run the risk of being issued with a penalty notice (link here to Penalty Notice page please) or being taken to court. The LA may decide to prosecute a parent. If this happens: Parents can be fined up to £2,500 or imprisoned for failing to ensure that their child attends school regularly; Magistrates can also impose a Parenting Order, which means that the parent has to attend a counselling and guidance programme, usually a parenting class.
Reporting Absences
If your child is going to be absent from school, it is essential that you follow our absence procedures and contact the school to provide a reason for their absence. You should contact school before 8:30am on each day of absence.
Parents can encourage good attendance by:
- having a regular bedtime and morning routine
- preparing for the morning routine by packing a bag the night before and setting out uniform
- talking together about all the fun their child will have at school
- arranging routine medical appointments,outings and holidays out of school hours
- talking to their child’s teacher if there are any concerns or anxieties
- working with their child to develop healthy hygiene practices If you are facing difficulties getting your child into school, it is important to discuss this with school at the earliest opportunity.
The world is run by those who turn up
Attending school every day = 100% attendance
Attending 4½ days a week = 90% attendance = 4 weeks missed per year
Attending 4 days a week = 80% attendance = more than half a term missed per year.
An average attendance of 80% or less across a child’s school career adds up to missing a whole 2 years from school.
Punctuality is just as important. Make every minute count! Being late for school reduces learning time. If your child is 5 minutes late every day, they will miss three days of learning each year. If your child is 15 minutes late every day, they will miss 2 weeks of learning each year.
We’re here to support you with your child’s attendance.
Please reach out to Claire Marrow Claire.marrow@stoughton.surrey.sch.uk at Stoughton Infants and Jackie Wells Jackie.wells@northmead.surrey.sch.uk at Northmead Juniors.
Penalty Notices
The School Attendance Regulations 2024 state that Headteachers may not grant any leave of absence during term time unless there are exceptional circumstances.
If leave is taken without authorisation, we are obliged to inform Surrey County Council who will issue a Penalty Notice.
You will be liable to receive a penalty notice per parent/carer and the following will apply:
- If you have not incurred a penalty notice relating to this child since 19 August 2024, then the penalty notice will be charged at the rate of £160.00, per parent/carer per child, if paid within 28 days. This will be reduced to £80.00 if paid within 21 days of receipt of the notice. Failure to pay the Penalty Notice will result in Surrey County Council considering legal proceedings against you in the Magistrates Court.
- If you have incurred a penalty notice relating to this child since 19 August 2024, the rolling 3 year period will be activated from the date of the first penalty notice and the second penalty notice will be charged at the flat rate of £160.00, per parent/carer per child, if paid within 28 days. There will be no reduction for payment within 21 days. Failure to pay the Penalty Notice will result in Surrey County Council considering legal proceedings against you in the Magistrates Court.
- If you have incurred 2 penalty notices relating to this child in the rolling 3 year period since the first penalty notice was issued, then you will NOT receive a third penalty notice – Surrey County Council will have no option but to consider a prosecution, per parent/carer per child, in the Magistrates Court under s 444 Education Act 1996.