The school is required to comply with the Government legislation relating to pupil absence i.e. The Education (Pupil Registration) (England) Regulations 2006 and The Education (Pupil Registration) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2013 (with effect from September 2013).
Term time holidays have been removed from the amended regulations. The amendments make clear that headteachers may not grant any leave of absence during term time unless there are exceptional circumstances.
All applications for leave of absence for any reason must be made in advance (at least 5 working days) by the parent to the Headteacher using the ‘Leave of Absence Request Form’ (attached). All requests for leave of absence will be treated on an individual case by case basis, complying with the legislation. For families with children who attend both Scartho Infants’ School and Scartho Junior Academy, the Headteachers will make a joint decision whether to authorise any leave of absence. The schools may also liaise with Tollbar Academy or other schools where siblings attend if appropriate.
No absence requests will be authorised for Year 2 children during May and June (due to statutory KS1 assessments and ongoing teacher assessments) or for Year 1 children during June (Phonics Screening Check).
Every single day a child is absent from school equates to a day of lost learning.
If your child's attendance becomes a concern, we will contact you and support you to improve it. We also work closely with the Education Welfare Service who offer support and advice.
We recognise the importance of good attendance and celebrate with weekly 'Class of the Week' certificates. At the end of each term, a 'Best Attendance of the Term' trophy is presented to the best attended class and those pupils achieving over 99% attendance receive a certificate.