Attendance, lateness and absence

At HWINS we work really hard with pupils and families to ensure that all of our children benefit from being in school as much as possible.

Any absence or lateness disrupts a pupil’s learning experience and we want to avoid that. Every school day matters – every school day counts.

How to Report an Absence

If your child cannot attend school for any reason, then please contact the school before 8.30am on each day of absence. You can do this either by phoning the school on 020 8977 3971 and selecting option 1 or by emailing the office on absence@hamptonwick.richmond.sch.uk

If we do not hear from you then the school will contact you via a phone call and/or an email on that same day.

Illness

Often children with minor illnesses, such as hay-fever or a common cold, can still attend school. We can administer prescribed medication once you have completed a medical consent form.

Child Medication Request Consent Form

If you feel that your child is too unwell to attend school then please follow the guidelines above for reporting their absence.

IMPORTANT: If a pupil is suffering with a diarrhoea/vomiting bug, they should not return to school for 48 hours after the last episode.

If your child becomes ill at school they will be looked after until such time that they can be collected. It is extremely important that emergency contact details are kept up to date so that we can contact you promptly. Please inform the school office immediately of any changes office@hamptonwick.richmond.sch.uk

Medical Appointments

If your child has an unavoidable medical or dental appointment then you will need to let us know by sending a copy of the appointment letter/email to absence@hamptonwick.richmond.sch.uk

Attendance and Punctuality

It is a parent or carer's legal responsibility to ensure that a child attends school and arrives on time. Where pupils have poor attendance or frequent lateness, we will contact you to discuss this further.

Lateness really adds up…

If your child is these many minutes late each day: Over a year they miss this much school:

5 minutes 3 days lost

10 minutes 6.5 days lost

15 minutes 10 days lost

20 minutes 13 days lost

30 minutes 19 days lost

Absence Requests

Any request for leave of absence during term time should be made by completing a request form, which can be downloaded here or collected from the school office.

Exceptional Leave of Absence Form

You should then complete this, attaching any supporting documentation and return it to absence@hamptonwick.richmond.sch.uk or directly to the school office.

WE DO NOT AUTHORISE FAMILY HOLIDAYS DURING TERM TIME.

Please note: Richmond upon Thames are now fining parents of children who do not attend school for unauthorised reasons; this would include taking holidays or long periods away travelling. Decisions to fine parents, rests with the Local Authority not Hampton Wick Infant and Nursery School.

A full copy of our Attendance policy can be found on the Policies page