Attendance
At Clapham we promote excellent attendance as we know that this directly contributes to children's learning. A child who has an excellent attendance record (96.5% or above) has a greater chance of making good or better progress in school. If children are regularly missing school their learning has lots of gaps which make it difficult for them to make links in their learning and progress in the same way as their peers.
Sickness Absence: What to do if you think your child is ill
If your child is ill you may judge that they are not well enough to attend school. If this is the case please call the office before 9am to let us know the reason for your child's absence. If your child is absent and you have not contacted us you will receive a call from the office to find out why they are not in school. This is in line with our safeguarding procedures. If you are unsure if your child is well enough to be in school you may bring them but please call in to let your child's class teacher know you have concerns about their health. If their condition deteriorates we will call you straight away so you can collect them. In the case of sickness or diarrhea your child must remain at home until 48 hours after they last experienced these symptoms.
Holidays in Term Time
In 2013 the DfE introduced new guidelines relating to taking holiday in term time. You may find it useful to read the guidance below which was issued at the time.
The new regulations make it clear that Headteachers may not grant any leave of absence during term time unless there are “exceptional circumstances”.
In exceptional circumstances Headteachers will determine the number of school days authorised on the registers, if the leave is granted.
We must advise you that if you take a leave of absence in term time of 5 days or more and it is unauthorised by school, this may result in the issue of a Penalty Notice under the provisions of the Education Act 1996. The Penalty Notice is £60.00, if it is not paid within 21 days, the fine is increased to £120.00 and there is a further 7 days to make this payment in full. Non-payment of a Penalty Notice within the total 28 day period could result in the commencement of criminal proceedings in the Magistrates Court under section 444 of the Education Act 1996.
Taking a holiday during term time means that children miss important school time – both educationally and for other school activities. Before completing this application parents/carers are asked to consider the effect on their child’s continuity of education.
Medical Appointments
Please could parents ensure that all doctor, optician and dentist appointments are made, wherever possible, outside school hours. It is very disruptive to children's learning if they are regularly absent from school for periods of the day. If children have a hospital appointment we understand that appointment times are allocated by the hospital and it may be ifficult to avoid taking these during the school day.