St Frideswide Primary School

Attendance

email: attendance@stfrideswides.co.uk

call: 01865 509444

Going to school regularly is important for your child’s future. Parents are responsible for making sure their children receive full-time education. Talking to your child and their teachers could help solve any problems if your child does not want to go to school.

Regular school attendance

Good attendance shows secondary schools and future potential employers that your child is reliable.

St Frideswide records details of all children’s attendance and absence at school. We do so at the beginning of morning (8.20am) and afternoon sessions. Gates open at 8:10am If your child is absent, you must tell the school why immediately.

The school will record the absence; the Local Authority will receive this information for each child. The Department of Education also receives annual attendance data for the school.

Your responsibilities as a parent

By law, all children of compulsory school age must receive a suitable full-time education. For most parents, this means registering their child at a school – though some choose to make other arrangements to provide a suitable, full-time education.

Once your child is registered at St Frideswide School, the parent is legally responsible for making sure they attend on a regular basis. If your child does not attend school on a regular basis you could get fined or be prosecuted in court.

Letter sent to parents in September 2024

How to prevent your child from missing school

You can help prevent your child missing school by:

- making sure they understand the importance of good attendance and punctuality
- taking an interest in their education – ask about school work and encourage them to get involved in school activities
- discussing any problems they may have at school and letting their teacher or principal know about anything serious
- not letting them take time off school for minor ailments – particularly those which would not prevent you from going to work

To avoid disrupting your child’s education, you should arrange appointments and outings:

- after school hours
- at weekends
- during school holidays
You should not expect St Frideswide School to agree to your child going on holiday during term time. If you need to take your child out of school during term time please email attendance@stfrideswides.co.uk to let us know you would like us to send you an absence request form.

Support on school attendance

A child’s school attendance can be affected if there are problems with:

bullying
housing or care arrangements
transport to and from school
work and money

If your child starts missing school, you might not know there is a problem. When you find out, ask your child and then approach their teacher or the school attendance team.

Find out about our approach to supporting and improving attendance here.