It is very important for children to attend school every day. Research shows that to develop the habit of regularly going to school, a routine starts in the first years of school. By regularly going to school, your child and your family gets to know the teacher, other children and families. The more you are involved in your child’s learning the more we can work together to support your child and make sure they get the best start to school.
Attending regularly helps your child develop a sense of belonging and connection to school.
Children at our school want to come to school because:
Did you know that the attendance habits set by children when they first start school continue throughout their school life. Learning is cumulative; if your child regularly misses school, it is harder for them to catch up.
A question we hear from some of our parents here at Goldsmith is: What if my child doesn’t want to go to school?
If this is the case with your child, please speak with the teacher or someone from the school as soon as possible, to get advice and support. We want to work with you and your child to offer the best possible school experience, not just so we can achieve our academic potential, but also unlock our emotional and social potential.
Did you know that getting your children to school on time is a good habit and benefits your child for a lifetime. Imagine that you were late attending school by just 5 minutes every day, that is the equivalent of over 3 days lost in the school year. That’s a lot of learning time for your child. By being late by just 10 minutes every day for a year adds up to 31 hours – that’s over six full days of learning lost to your child!
Figures from local council’s in the UK suggest that unauthorised absences, such as holidays during school term time, can also have a major impact on your child’s development and learning. A very poor attendance record will, and does, have a significant impact on learning. Not to mention you, as a parent, being at risk of receiving a penalty notice.
When you consider the average school year is around 190 days long, it really isn’t a lot of time to commit to ensuring your child has every chance of future success through learning during the school year. They will also learn important social and communication skills during this time.
Developing the habit of going to school regularly from Goldilocks upwards, is vital so your child does not miss out on important ideas and skills they need for future learning.
You can help by:
If your child is not well enough to attend school, please call the school office on 01922 710182 opt 1 or 07471030288, between 8am and 8.45am, specifying the reason for the absence.
If the absence lasts longer than one day, you will need to call the school office on each day of the absence. Where a pupils attendance has fallen below the school target or a pattern of non-attendance is identified, home visits will be carried out even if a reason has been given.
If you are not able to contact Mr Baker by telephone, please email student absence at studentabsence@goldsmith.windsoracademytrust.org.uk
Mr Baker or a member of the Family Support Team will contact you via telephone to discuss your child’s absence.
Not all illnesses require your child to take time off school. Please contact school to discuss the symptoms your child is displaying. You will be advised based on the information you provide in line with School Exclusions and Health Protection for School Facilities.
We are able to help support your child’s illness and medical needs in school and have trained members of staff who can administer medication. If your child requires medication, medical care or a risk assessment following an ongoing illness or injury, please contact the main office to complete the appropriate forms. Goldsmith Primary Academy likes to give all our pupils every opportunity to maximise their primary school experience and we will work with our families to help support and overcome any barriers.
Please only keep your child home if necessary.
Illness |
Should my child still come to school? |
Conjunctivitis | Yes. |
Hand, Foot and Mouth | Yes. |
Head Lice | Yes. |
Vomiting | Yes, but only if the vomiting has happened once. |
Slapped Cheek | Yes. |
Threadworms | Yes. |
Diarrhoea and Vomiting | No. Your child should remain off school for 48 hours from the last episode. |
Scarlet Fever | No. Your child should remain off school until 24 hours after starting antibiotics. |
Tonsilitis | Yes. |
Chicken Pox | No. Your child can return when all spots are crusted over. |
Impetigo | No. Your child can return when lesions are crusted and healed or 48 hours after starting antibiotics. |
All children should aim for 100% attendance and a minimum of 97% attendance is expected. If attendance falls below this, it can have a significant impact on the number of lessons missed, which then impacts progress and achievement.
The table below shows our approach to dealing with attendance that falls below the expected level.
Attendance level | What happens? |
Below 97% |
|
Below 95% |
|
Below 93% |
|
Below 90% |
In addition to the above;
|
We like to celebrate everything our children accomplish at Goldsmith Primary and we give all children the opportunity to celebrate their attendance.
We do termly prizes based on your child’s weekly attendance – the more your children attends school the greater their chances are of winning a prize. Keep your eye peeled for posters around the school and via ParentMail.
We also do a weekly class league table. Every week, each class will earn points based on the overall class attendance.
By doing a weekly league table, we are able to include those pupils who may require time off school due to reasons beyond their control.