Attendance

Regular attendance at school is vital. Put simply, absence means missed learning; without it the learning process becomes fragmented and unsatisfactory. Melbourn Primary School wants every child to have the best possible attendance at school to enable them to maximise their potential. There is a strong link between good school attendance and achieving good results for children. Children who frequently miss school may fall behind in their work which may affect their prospects. Absence may also have an effect on friendships. 

The school sees 96% attendance or above as the target for all pupils. Amendments to the Education (Pupil Registration) Regulations 2006 and September 2013 make clear that Headteachers may not authorise holidays (or other leave of absence) in term time unless there are very exceptional circumstances. The school upholds these regulations and supports the use of financial penalties and court action where necessary.
 

Please see below local authority guidance on attendance, up dated 7^th January 2022.

 

As per the guidance, in exceptional circumstances, the Headteacher will authorise absence where all parents and carers, in a household, have tested positive and have no support to ensure attendance of a child who remains negative.  This will only be considered for children whose attendance is not of concern.

 

In addition, in exceptional circumstances, the Headteacher will authorise the absence where a pupil remains negative but is a close contact of someone living in the same household who has tested positive.  The authorisation will be for the isolation period of the contact.   Once again this is only possible where the child’s attendance is not of concern.  During this period, it is recommended that the child take daily LFD tests for 7 days.