Kingsmead Primary School
The Leap Federation
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Attendance & Punctuality
Attendance
A lot happens in a school day! If your child misses school unnecessarily, they are missing out on learning, playing and their friends. Children should be at school, on time, every day the school is open, unless the reason for the absence is unavoidable.
Parents & carers should contact the school on the first day of a pupil’s absence. They should state the reason for their child’s absence and also the date on which they are expected to return to school.
Children should not be taken out of school during term time and every effort should be made to make appointments after school or during the school holiday periods. When this is not possible, you must apply in writing to the school explaining the situation and a decision will be made whether to authorise the absence or not.
HOLIDAYS IN TERM TIME - Please note that we do not authorise holidays in term time under any circumstances. Parents & carers need to ensure that they do not book holidays or flights before term ends or after term has begun. Your child is at risk of losing their place at Kingsmead if you take unauthorised holidays. In recent years we have seen the number of requests for time out of school to visit seriously sick elderly relatives rise massively in the last weeks of July and the first weeks of September. It is impossible for us to distinguish between a true family crisis and those seeking cheaper flights. A false request is morally wrong, a bad example to set children and is unfair on those who do have a genuine need.
Punctuality
The school gates open at 8.50am so children have a calm start to the day and are able to walk into their classroom on arrival where they are greeted by their teacher and encouraged to quietly read or do some handwriting, ready for the 9am start of the school day. It is important that your child arrives for school on time. Your child will miss out on valuable school time if they are late. The staff do their best to settle their class every morning, but the learning of the whole class is disputed if there are late arrivals.
The main gate will close at 9.00am, so if your child is not in school by 9.00am, children and parents will have to enter the school by the main Reception area and the admin team will record the reason for lateness. If your child is not in class on time, they may miss the register that is taken every morning. We need to know who is in the school for safety reasons (e.g: emergency evacuations).
Every time your child is late, it is recorded, and the total is added to your child’s Progress Report. If your child is late on several occasions, you will receive a letter at the end of the half term. If there is no improvement in punctuality during the next term, then an appointment with the Education Welfare Officer and Deputy Headteacher will be made, to discuss your child's punctuality.
