Attendance
The Governors and staff at St. Michael’s Church of England Primary Academy are united in their belief that regular school attendance is the key to enabling children to maximise the educational opportunities available to them. Helping them to become emotionally resilient, confident and competent adults who are able to realise their full potential and make a positive contribution to their community. As a result, the school aims for a 100% attendance with the minimum attendance target figure of 96%.
Working Together to Improve School Attendance
As stated in the DfE document ‘Working Together to Improve School Attendance‘ (August 2024), school will:
Expect – Aspire to high standards of attendance from all pupils and parents and build a culture where all can, and want to, be in school and ready to learn by prioritising attendance improvement across the school.
Monitor – Rigorously use attendance data to identify patterns of poor attendance (at individual and cohort level) as soon as possible so all parties can work together to resolve them before they become entrenched.
Listen and understand – When a pattern is spotted, discuss with pupils and parents to listen to and understand barriers to attendance and agree how all partners can work together to resolve them.
Facilitate support – Remove barriers in school and help pupils and parents to access the support they need to overcome the barriers outside of school. This might include an early help or whole family plan where absence is a symptom of wider issues.
Formalise support – Where absence persists and voluntary support is not working or not being engaged with, partners should work together to explain the consequences clearly and ensure support is also in place to enable families to respond. Depending on the circumstances this may include formalising support through an attendance contract or education supervision order.
Enforce – Where all other avenues have been exhausted and support is not working or not being engaged with, enforce attendance through statutory intervention: a penalty notice in line with the National Framework or prosecution to protect the pupil’s right to an education.
Improving Attendance:
- Early Intervention: Our staff closely monitor attendance data and identify students who may be at risk of falling behind. We proactively reach out to these families to provide support and address any issues that may be affecting attendance.
- Parent Communication: We maintain open lines of communication with parents regarding their child’s attendance. Regular updates and reminders about the importance of attendance are sent via newsletters and emails.
Celebrating Good Attendance!
Collective Worship: We hold termly Collective Worships to celebrate students with outstanding attendance. We recognise individual students and classes who have achieved high levels of attendance, reinforcing the value of being present in school.
Display Boards: Our school features a dedicated display boards that highlights class attendance. This is in the dining hall.
Stickers: Each week, the children who have achieved 100% attendance for that week, will be celebrated in class and receive a 100% Attendance Sticker.
Awards: Each week, the children with 100% attendance, have their name added to a tombola. At the end of Autumn Term and Spring Term, a name is pulled at random, and this child will receive a voucher. There will be one voucher for EYFS/KS1 and one for KS2. So, if a child has 100% attendance, 6 weeks out of 7, their name will be entered 6 times.
Attendance Awards: At the end of the academic year, there is a special ‘Attendance Extravaganza’ for those children who have achieved 99%
