It is your responsibility as parents to ensure that your child/children attend school regularly. For the safety of all children it is important for you to telephone the school office prior to/at the beginning of the absence. Absences are recorded in class registers and frequent or irregular absences not supported by a reasonable excuse, will be notified to parents and the matter may be referred to the Opportunities for All Service. If possible please, try to make dental/medical appointments outwith school hours. However, if this is not possible please inform us in writing or by telephone of the appointment and arrange to collect your child from class.
Unexplained Absences / Lateness. Parents are asked to ensure that:
- The school is informed if the pupil/family are running late.
- Any legitimate absence is notified to the school using the School App or by telephone before 9am on the first day of the absence without fail, and that further calls or updates via the School App, are made before 9am, on every subsequent day of the absence. Schools will contact you in writing with any concerns.
- Contact telephone numbers, whether for home, for parents at work or for other emergency contacts, are kept up to date and are genuinely numbers where a response will be received. This is particularly important with mobile phone numbers.
- The school is kept informed of the absence and the likely return date.
- Any planned absences are officially notified to the school, in writing, in advance.
- School would be informed before 1.15pm if a child was not returning to school after lunch because of becoming unwell over that period.
- Latecomers report to the school office on arrival at school.
Staff will ensure that absences are checked every day and follow up the whereabouts of any child for whom we have no explanation. Due to the amount of extra work involved and necessity of having the correct information we would ask you to make note of the above requirements and ensure that you follow through the procedures to ensure the safety of all our children.
Holidays the Government has highlighted the importance of school attendance to a child’s development and has required schools to set targets for improved attendance. Against this background, there is considerable concern at the increasing number of term-time holidays being taken by children at the request of their parents. The Headteacher is not able to refuse permission to parents for such holidays but it is the position of Education Services that these holidays are officially recorded as “unauthorised”.
Education Services recognises that some parents have difficulties in arranging their own holidays to suit school holiday periods and whilst parents remain free, within reason, to remove their children for holidays during term time. They should, however, appreciate that prolonged absence from school at any stage is harmful to a child’s education and it is not possible and not fair to other children – to direct teaching time to assist a child who has been on holiday to catch up on what they have missed. Parents should always inform the school, in writing, of any such holiday plans. The exception to this is when a family holiday is judged to be important to the well-being and cohesion of the family following serious or terminal illness, bereavement or other traumatic events. A parent may be asked to come into school to explain the reason for their child’s absence in line with the Education Authority’s legal duty under the [Education (Scotland) Act 1980, Section 36]
