Attendance

Harris Academy Sutton regards attendance as a key factor in supporting students to maximise their potential. We believe that all students are only able to achieve their potential if they attend school punctually and avoid missing lessons.  We thus expect students to achieve 100% attendance and punctuality. Individual student records prove that this is achievable. Punctuality to school is crucial to create a calm and purposeful atmosphere and students who are persistently late often disrupt their own and others’ learning. We expect students to arrive on time for learning.

A student’s progress is severely hampered if he does not regularly attend school. To illustrate:

• 90% attendance is an average of one day out of school per fortnight over a school year.
• 90% attendance over 5 years at secondary school is half a school year missed.
• 80% attendance over 5 years at secondary school is the same as one whole school year missed.

Harris Sutton’s: Attendance Definitions
98-100%	Expected
95-97%	Satisfactory
Below 95% but above 90%	A cause for concern
Below 90%	A serious cause for concern

It is clearly understood that there are exceptional circumstances when levels of attendance may fall below 98% or even 95% for reasons beyond the student and parents’ control. These are very rare exceptions rather than the rule.

Furthermore, we acknowledge the link between school attendance and safeguarding, and the need to monitor attendance carefully in order to address poor or irregular attendance without delay. We will do all we can to ensure that our students achieve maximum possible attendance and that any problems that prevent full attendance are identified and acted upon promptly.

The Academy gates open at 8am. Our lessons begin at 8.30am, and we suggest students arrive at 8.15am latest to start lesson promptly at 8.25am. Students that arrive after 8.25am will receive a punctuality mark and a break & lunch time detention, unless a parent calls to explain an extenuating reason for the lateness.

We expect that all students will:

• Attend school regularly
• Attend school punctually
• Attend school appropriately prepared for the day

We expect that all parents/carers who have day to day responsibility for the children and young people will:

• Encourage regular school attendance and be aware of their legal responsibilities;
• Ensure that the child/children in their care arrive at school punctually, prepared for the school day;
• Parents and carers are requested to notify the school of any absence for every day of their child’s absence and any further subsequent absence. 

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Reporting Absence

Parents and carers are requested to notify the school of any absence for every day of their child’s absence. We ask that you fill in the absence reporting form linked below:

ABSENCE REPORTING FORM

Our school’s attendance officer will decide whether the absence is authorised or not. In the case of parents not notifying the school of any absence we will make contact to find out why your child is not in school.

 

If you wish to request a special leave of absence, for example to attend a funeral, you will need to fill in an absence request form below: 

APPLICATION FOR EXCEPTIONAL LEAVE OF ABSENCE

This must be completed well in advance. The final decision whether to approve will be made by the Principal.

Harris Academy Sutton does not authorise any holidays taken during term time and this will be recorded as unauthorised.