Attendance Procedures

Arrival at school

Children can enter school from 8.45am when the inner school gates are opened by Bodriggy staff. This gives pupils time to enter school, settle and be ready for learning to begin the moment school starts. School begins promptly at 8.55am when registration takes place.

Punctuality

If your child arrives after this time they must report to the school office, so that we can mark them as present, but late on the register. Unfortunately, as the school dinner registers are also taken at this time, a child arriving late is unable to take advantage of the choice on offer and has either a vegetarian or non-vegetarian meal allocated.

Arriving in school after the register closes at 9.30am counts as an unauthorised absence and will show on your child’s attendance record. This can only be amended if the parent/carer informs school of the reason of any late arrival.

Medical Appointments

If your child has to attend a doctor’s/ hospital appointment, the school needs to be notified in advance and any appointment cards/letters will need to be shown to evidence this, where possible.

Illness

If your child is unwell the school should be contacted as soon as possible on the first day of any absence, either by telephone on 01736 752808 or email Rhutchings@bodriggy.tpacademytrust.org. If your child is absent for more than one day, school would appreciate regular updates.

If you fail to contact school, a telephone call and/or text will be made home. These calls are logged as part of our attendance monitoring procedures.

We understand that there are sometimes circumstances in which your child cannot attend or may be late and in these situations we ask that you contact us to discuss the matter. We are here to help.

Important Changes to the Law Regarding Penalty Notices For Unauthorised Absence From School (from 19th August, 2024)

From 19th August, 2024, the Government will make important changes to the Law regarding penalty notices for unauthorised absence form school. The letter, containing answers to some Frequently Asked Questions, is at the foot of this page. The main changes to the Law are:

1. There will be a new national threshold of 10 unauthorised sessions for any reason (equivalent to 5 school days) within a rolling 10 school week period for when a penalty notice must be considered.
2. The new rules mean you will no longer be able to take your child out of school for one week’s holiday without the consideration of a penalty notice being issued.
3. There will be an increase in the penalty fine from £60 to £80 if paid in 21 days. If the fine is not paid by the first 21 days, it will rise to £160 if paid within 28 days of being issued.
4. If a second penalty fine is issued to the same parent for the same child within a 3-year rolling period, the fine will automatically rise to £160 with no option to pay the lower rate of £80.
5. If a parent then commits a third offence in a 3-year rolling period, the local authority will need to consider other enforcement options available to them. This could include prosecution.

If parents need to request for a child to have leave granted during term time, a Leave of Absence Request form must be completed. This form is available from the school office or, alternatively, follow the link below.

Please note that an authorised absence still counts as an absence on your child’s attendance record.

Addressing Attendance Concerns/Monitoring

At Bodriggy Academy we rely upon parents to ensure their child attends school regularly and punctually. Therefore, any concerns about attendance are initially raised with parents/carers.

We monitor all attendance with the aim to discuss reasons for low attendance and to offer support to parents where needed.

Where a child’s attendance record does not improve over a period of time then the school has a responsibility to involve our Educational Welfare Officer and Trust Inclusion Lead, Rita Rowson.

Rita and Brioney Henshall (Child and Family Lead) hold attendance clinics to monitor and aid parents of children whose attendance is cause for concern.