School starts at	08:50
School ends at	15:10
School registers are closed after 30 minutes after which time, unless a satisfactory reason can be evidence, the absence will be unauthorised and could lead to legal interventions	09:20
The Senior Leader responsible for championing attendance (Attendance Champion) is	Muhammad Bilal Nadat
The Senior Leader responsible for championing attendance (Attendance Champion) can be contacted by e-mailing	gardenofknowledge184@yahoo.co.uk
The school will always prioritise support over legal interventions. However, the school has a duty of care to inform parents that do not respond to the advice and support offered legal interventions will be pursued. Details of advice for parents from the local authority can be found by following the link.	https://www.blackburn.gov.uk/schools-and- education/school-attendance

Introduction

The School Attendance and Punctuality Policy operates within the context of the school’s mission statement. It is the aim of leaders to support every pupil to attend school each day in order to fulfil their academic and social potential.
To realise this aim, the school will work in partnership with parents/carers, the local authority, and outside agencies to offer pupils support in maintaining excellent attendance. The barriers to accessing education are wide and complex, both within and beyond the school gates, and are often specific to individual pupils and families. Improving attendance is everyone’s business: effective communication and joined-up working are paramount. Excellent attendance is a pre- requisite of academic success. The school will ensure that parents are kept well-informed about the link between attendance and attainment and that when academic progress is jeopardised, this message is clearly reiterated, and support is offered to remove any existing or emerging barriers to attendance.
School leaders will ensure a calm, safe, supportive and stimulating learning environment where pupils want to be present and are eager and ready to learn.
The school will operate on a support first basis, giving each parent opportunities to address any issues before using legal intervention as a last resort. Leaders should expect high standards, monitor patterns of attendance, listen to parents to understand barriers and facilitate and formalise support where necessary. Enforcement and the use of legal interventions should only be considered where there is evidence of a lack of parental engagement, and it is likely to encourage an improvement in attendance (with the exception of unauthorised leave in term time).
The policy should be implemented alongside the Department for Education guidance document ‘Working Together to Improve Attendance’ and the school’s Behaviour Policy which sets out the protocols for the day-to-day management of behaviour, including attendance and punctuality.

Aims

To provide clear guidelines about how the school promotes and attains high levels of pupil attendance and punctuality.
To ensure that all stakeholders understand the school’s expectations of themselves, and each other, and strive to attain them.
To support the mission, vision and values of the trust.

Who is responsible for this policy?

The trust has overall responsibility for the effective operation of this policy and for ensuring compliance with the relevant statutory or trust framework. The trust has delegated day-to-day responsibility for operating the policy to Hamza Mala (Headteacher) and Muhammad Bilal Nadat School Business manager.
The senior leadership team at Rawdhatul Uloom Islamic Primary school have a specific responsibility to ensure the fair application of this policy and all members of staff are responsible for supporting colleagues and ensuring its success.

Definitions

‘Session’ is a term related to the recording of absence data – a school day usually has two ‘sessions’ (morning and afternoon), divided by a break, for which attendance must be recorded.
‘Authorised absence’ means that the school has either given approval in advance for a pupil of compulsory school age to be away or has accepted an explanation offered afterwards as justification for absence.
‘Unauthorised absence’ is where the school is not satisfied with the reasons given for an absence.
‘Attendance Champion’ is the senior leader responsible for attendance.

Legal duty

Section 7 of the Education Act 1996 places a duty on parents/carers to ensure children of compulsory school age receive efficient full-time education suitable to the child’s age, ability and aptitude and to any special needs the child may have. Parents/carers have a legal duty to ensure their child’s regular attendance at the school where they are registered.
In exceptional circumstances the Headteacher, with the consent of the parent, may consider a temporary reduced timetable.
A parent/carer who fails to ensure that their child attends school regularly, without good reason, is guilty of an offence under Section 444(1) of the Education Act 1996.

School commitment

Everyone in school is committed to promoting good attendance and punctuality.
All members of staff are made aware of how their role impacts on attendance and punctuality as well as the expectations of them in ensuring consistent application of the policy and the use of absence codes. Mandatory training will support this commitment. The extent and regularity of the training will be proportionate to the role undertaken but the message will be clear that every member of staff can make a difference.
The school will listen to and support pupils and parents/carers to achieve good attendance and punctuality, working closely with parents/ carers where absence is a cause for concern.
The school strives for 100% attendance for all pupils. The whole school attendance target is 97%. If a pupil achieves at least 97% attendance in one whole school year, they will have missed less than 6 days from school.

Responsibilities

Rawdhatul Uloom Islamic Primary school will:

devise and review the trust Attendance and Punctuality Policy
set and review the level targets for attendance and punctuality as part of the school’s target setting process
provide training for all colleagues to make an active contribution to improving attendance aligned to their role and responsibilities

The Trustees will:

ensure that strategies are in place to promote and implement the Attendance and Punctuality Policy throughout the school and are understood by parents/carers
review the effectiveness of the implementation of the policy in light of the school’s reports

The Headteacher will:

ensure the school ethos promotes and celebrates good attendance and punctuality
ensure strategies are in place to promote and implement the Attendance and Punctuality Policy throughout the school
monitor the school’s offer to ensure the delivery of a curriculum which is engaging and personalised to the needs of the pupils
monitor data on attendance and punctuality via reports from the senior leader responsible for attendance
determine, in collaboration with the senior leader responsible for attendance, whether to authorise any proposed absences requested on the school’s official request form
provide the Trustees with termly reviews on attendance and punctuality, including data about pupils who are persistently absent (90% or below) or severely absent (50% or below)

The senior leader responsible for attendance will:

ensure that the school attendance strategy is implemented with fidelity
lead initiatives to promote the profile of attendance throughout the school including a package of rewards that is valued by pupils. Interrogate and analyse data on attendance and punctuality on a daily, weekly, half-termly, and termly basis and prepare reports and delegate actions, as required
oversee the arrangements for pastoral / attendance review meetings and quality assure any action planscomply with the Department for Education Statutory Guidance on Children Missing Education (CME) and follow trust protocol as outlined in the attendance handbook
ensure the school complies with the requirement set out in the local authority’s code of conduct when requesting a legal intervention

The attendance officer will:

monitor attendance on daily, weekly, half-termly, termly and annual basis, contacting parents/carers of pupils who have been identified as at-risk, to challenge absences and encourage an early return to school
ensure data on attendance and punctuality is displayed in prominent places visible to pupils
where appropriate, visit the home and/or make a referral to the local authority’s education welfare service or contracted equivalent
issue appropriate sanctions to pupils for whom attendance and punctuality is a cause for concern
manage the arrangements for pupils who need to attend appointments during school time
work with the senior leader responsible for attendance to maintain an up-to-date attendance risk register and punctuality risk register of high-risk pupils in designated year groups
lead pastoral / attendance review meetings and develop an action plan involving the child, parent/carer and, where appropriate, other agencies for pupils whose attendance and/or punctuality falls below the expected level
co-ordinate the support plan for pupils returning to school after a prolonged absence
co-ordinate the collation of all the documentary evidence required by the local authority for pursuing a legal intervention

Class teachers responsible for registering morning and afternoon sessions will:

provide regular advice, encouragement, challenge and support to the class as a whole and individually to pupils about the importance of regular attendance and punctuality using the data provided by the administrative team
ensure that the statutory attendance register is taken at the start of the first session of the school day and once during the second session.
ensure any communications related to attendance and punctuality are provided to the attendance officer
be alert and deal with any signs of disaffection which could result in poor attendance and punctuality and impact on learning and ensure this is recorded and communicated to the pastoral team
identify absence trends or concerns and raise with the relevant member of administration team/pastoral team staff

Administrative staff will:

monitor registration on a daily basis and ensure any missing marks are quickly resolved to ensure pupils are safe
be the first point of contact for parents/carers and relevant school staff regarding pupil absence and appointments
collate and issue all attendance and punctuality data on a daily, weekly, half-termly, termly and annual basis to the attendance officer/head of year and senior leader responsible for attendance
maintain a record of all applications for leave of absence during term time and requests for issuing a penalty notice

Parents/carers will:

be aware that it is an offence for their child to be absent from school without a valid reason
be aware that only the school can determine if an absence from school is ‘authorised’ensure their child arrives at school on time, dressed in full uniform, ready and equipped to learn
inform the school if their child is unable to attend, including the reason for absence and the expected date of return
ensure that all appointments, where possible, are arranged after school
avoid arranging holidays during term time
ensure that all requests for leave of absence during term time for exceptional circumstances are made by completing the ‘Leave of Absence During Term Time Request Form’, where possible at least one month in advance.

Pupils will:

aim to achieve 100% attendance and punctuality by arriving to school on time every day
come to school well prepared and with the right attitude; to enjoy and achieve
be proud of achieving excellent attendance and punctuality
be punctual to all lessons
ensure they are registered for all timetabled lessons and inform the relevant member of staff if they are not able to be registered
any communication regarding absence should be passed to the relevant member of staff
speak to the appropriate member of staff if there are any barriers to attending school regularly!

Registration

The school will ensure that an attendance register is taken at the start of the first session of the school day and once during the second session. On each occasion, they must record whether every pupil is:

present
attending an approved educational activity
absent; or
unable to attend due to exceptional circumstances

Registers will be marked using the Department for Education Attendance and Absence Codes

Appointments

All appointments, where possible, must be arranged after school.
Parents/carers should provide advance notice by way of a medical card and/or letter for any time off school required for medical appointments for the session to be authorised.
Time away from school as a result of an appointment must be kept to a minimum. Pupils should attend school before and after appointments where possible.

Pupils leaving school during the school day

Pupils are not permitted to leave school unescorted during school hours for any reason. This is not limited to, when pupils are suspended or are unwell. Pupils should only be collected from school by an appropriate known adult, ideally a parent or carer. Over the telephone parental consent allowing for a child to walk home alone during school hours is not permitted. The only exceptions to this rule would be:
- where a pupil is on an agreed, regularly reviewed, short-term reduced timetable
- permission is given by parents in writing to attend a scheduled appointment
In the event that a pupil cannot be collected from school by an appropriate known adult or parent/carer, the school must make arrangements for the pupil to remain in school until the end of the school day or be taken home in line with the Lone Working Policy (points 28-31). The care of the child must be handed over to an appropriate known adult, ideally a parent/carer, in the family home.
If a pupil is displaying dangerous behaviours, the school should contact the Police. Any decisions made in this regard should always be communicated with parents/carers.

Absences

On each day of absence, parents/carers must contact school before the morning registration period begins.
Where no information has been received, the school will contact the parent/carer of the absent pupil to enquire about the absence.
Parents/carers should contact school every day until the pupil returns to school or alternatively indicate the length of the absence and the reasons why it is known the pupil will be unable to attend e.g. recovering from an operation. In these circumstances a ‘check in’ date must be agreed when the absence will be reviewed.
Failure to provide a reasonable explanation within 5 days of the start of the absence will result in the absence being marked as unauthorised. In these circumstances legal interventions may be considered.
It is the responsibility of the Headteacher, not the parent/carer, to decide whether the absence is authorised or unauthorised. Such decisions will be made in accordance with DfE regulations and guidance.

Attendance and absence data

The tables below equate percentage attendance to time missed from school.

Table 1: Attendance over one whole school year for each pupil

Attendance	Missed Days
100%	0
98%	Less than 4 days / 8 sessions
97%	Less than 6 days / 11 sessions (school target)
95%	9½ days / 19 sessions
90%	19 days / 38 sessions
85%	28 ½ days / 59 sessions
80%	38 days / 76 sessions

Table 2: Attendance over 5 years for each pupil

Attendance	Missed Weeks
85-90%	19 weeks = ½ year absence from school
80%	38 weeks = 1 full year absence from school

Persistent absence

According to the Department for Education guidelines, a pupil will be considered as a persistent absentee if their attendance is 90% or lower (i.e. 10% or more sessions are missed).
Any pupil who is at the persistent absence threshold or at risk of moving towards that threshold is placed on the Attendance Risk Register and given priority for intervention.

Severe Absence

According to the Department for Education guidelines, a pupil will be considered as a severe absentee if their attendance is 50% or lower (i.e., 50% or more sessions are missed).
Any pupil who is at the severe absence threshold is at serious risk of harm. There should be an intensive level of support, and where appropriate challenge, including the use of legal interventions to secure improvement.

Term time leave and holidays

The Education (Pupil Registration) Regulations 2013 prohibits the Headteacher of a school from granting leave of absence to a pupil, except where an advance application has been made by the parent/carer and the Headteacher considers that there are exceptional circumstances relating to the application.
The request for leave of absence, where possible, must be made at least one month in advance by completing the ‘Holiday Request Form’.
For the purpose of defining ‘exceptional circumstances’ and as a guiding principle only, the Headteacher may consider if the reasons given for requesting leave are rare, significant, unavoidable and short.
The school will not consider the following to be exceptional circumstances:
- the availability of cheap holidays
- the availability of the desired accommodation
- an overlap at the beginning or end of the school term
- the working pattern or availability of parental holiday entitlement
Where a leave of absence is granted, the Headteacher will decide the number of school days a child can be away from school, and the agreed date of return to school.
Where a leave of absence is not granted or where the child fails to return to school by the agreed date following approval of leave of absence, then the principal will pass on the details to the local authority in line with the duty around reporting children missing education.
The Headteacher may request the local authority to issue each adult with parental responsibility with a penalty notice for each child for absence from school.
In certain circumstances, the school, after notifying the local authority, may decide to remove the child from the roll of the school.

Managing absence/lateness

Daily monitoring

The attendance officer will:

ensure that any pupil who arrives after the register has been taken signs in at the reception office noting a time of arrival or minutes late for purposes of safeguarding
ensure the attendance register is updated with details of pupils who arrive late including pupils being marked as an unauthorised late if they arrive more than 30 minutes late without an acceptable reason. An unauthorised late can be used to support a legal intervention
ensure details of pupils and the reasons for the late arrival are communicated to the class teachers
ensure accurate details are noted of parents/carers contacting the school about their child’s absence – including the reason for the absence and the likely length of the absence
coordinate all parents/carers being contacted by telephone who fail to notify the school of their child’s absence
send a text to all parents/carers of pupils arriving late to school, informing them of their child’s failure to arrive on time and any relevant consequences

Weekly monitoring

The attendance officer will review the weekly attendance and punctuality data and:

contact parents/carers by telephone to inform them of the school’s concern regarding attendance or punctuality, particularly if there are patterns to absences or lateness
keep an overview of weekly attendance across the school

Rawdhatul Uloom Islamic Primary School will recognise, celebrate and reward pupils who achieve 100% attendance and punctuality.

Vulnerable Pupils

The school recognises that some groups of pupils are more vulnerable to poor attendance than others. These groups should be carefully monitored, and intervention should be targeted where additional support is required.
Pupils with medical needs, special educational needs and/or disabilities, young carers, pupils with a social worker or in a receipt of the pupil premium are likely to require more targeted support than pupils outside of these groups. However, schools must never assume that because individual pupils do not belong to these groups that additional support will not be required, and colleagues must remain vigilant.
When a pupil with a social worker is absent without good reason, the social worker should be informed of unauthorised absences and support improved attendance. Where schools are considering the use of legal interventions, the view the relevant social worker should be considered although the final decision will be taken by the school in liaison with the local authority school attendance service.
The school should inform the youth offending team of any pupils who are under their care and have unexplained absences.

Re-integration of pupils following long term absence

The school recognises the key role it can play in ensuring the successful reintegration of pupils returning after a prolonged period of absence.
The school will work in partnership with parents/carers and external agencies (if appropriate), to assist a smooth reintegration back into school.
All relevant staff will be informed of the child’s circumstances and a member of staff will be nominated to oversee the pupil’s return.
The pupil’s peers will also be included to ensure they welcome the pupil back to school and support the reintegration process.

Legal Interventions

The school, in consultation with the local authority, where appropriate will exercise its legal powers to address poor attendance in school. Details of the full range of legal interventions available to school can be found in the DfE’s ‘working together to improve attendance’ statutory guidance.

Removal from the roll of the school

Schools must only remove compulsory school-aged children from the roll of the school under certain circumstances defined in Education (Pupil Registration) (England) Regulations 2006.
School must complete the deletion from roll checklist team before removing a child from the roll of the school.
For removal from roll for elective home education (EHE), schools must follow the LA’s guidance before removing a child from the roll of a school.
School is advised to consult with the LA’s admissions and exclusions team on any cases where children are missing from school and their whereabouts are not known. This should be done prior to submitting a referral to the local authority’s CME team.