Attendance

If your child is absent from school it is important that you contact the school by 9.30am on the first day of non-attendance to give the reason for their absence. Call 01633 484673 and choose option 1 to report your child’s absence,  email head.cwmbranrc@torfaen.gov.uk or send a message via the School Gateway app.

If your child is unwell you must inform the school of the nature of the illness and not just state “not very well”. If your child is attending an appointment please send in a copy of the appointment letter, where possible, for our records. Pupil absence/lateness is monitored closely by the Education Welfare Officer.

Poor punctuality is not acceptable. If your child misses the start of the day they can miss work and do not spend time with their class teacher getting vital information and news for the day. Late arriving students also disrupt lessons, can be embarrassing for the child and can also encourage absence. LATENESS ADDS UP!

Being 15 minutes late every day will add up to TWO WEEKS of school missed every year

The school day starts at 9am and we expect your child to be in class and ready to learn by that time.  If they arrive after 9am, you will be asked to sign your child in and they will receive a late mark.

If your child arrives after 9am, they must enter through the main entrance by the school office and be signed in by a parent or guardian.  This is to ensure that every child has been registered in school in the case of a fire drill or emergency.

At 9.30am the registers will be closed.  In accordance with the regulations, if your child arrives after that time they will receive a mark that shows them to be on site, but this will not count as a present mark and it will mean they have an unauthorised absence.

If your child has a persistent late record you will be called for a meeting to resolve the problem, but you can approach us at any time if you are having problems getting your child to school on time.

Parents wishing to request a leave of absence in school term time please note:

• There is no automatic entitlement to any leave in term time therefore parents must seek school’s permission before taking their child out of school.

• School will only authorise the absence if there are exceptional reasons for taking the leave in term time.

• School will require parents to fill in a leave request form prior to booking any holiday.

• When considering a request for a holiday during term time the following are taken into consideration - the exceptional circumstances stated; the age of the child, the stage of the child’s education and progress and the effects of the requested absence on both elements, the overall attendance pattern of the child, and the time of year.

• There may be occasions where, even in exceptional circumstances, we may not agree leave:

• We will consider every request for leave individually.

• Where parents have children in more than one school a separate request must be made to each school. The Head teacher at each school will make their own decision based on the factors relating to the child at their school.

Parents need to consider very carefully before making any request for leave of absence the effect an absence would have on their child’s education and continuity of learning.

Reasons why you should not take your child out of school in term time:

• Evidence shows that even small amounts of absence from school can affect your child’s progress and attainment.

• The education of your child could be disrupted both prior to and after any leave, causing them to fall behind and struggling to catch up.

• For every week of school a child misses, they lose 25 hours of education which can never be regained.

• Approximately every 6 weeks your child gets a holiday from school; therefore, you should use this time to take your child on holiday.

If you are considering taking your child out of school in term time, a request form (below) should be submitted at least four weeks before the departure date to allow sufficient time for appropriate consideration.  Parents are strongly advised not to finalise any holiday booking arrangements before receiving the school’s decision on their request. In any event, the request form must be received by school.

There is no automatic right for pupils to be granted authorised leave of absence and requests will only be considered where there are exceptional circumstances.

Leave of absence which has not been agreed will be marked as unauthorised.  These absences may be referred to the Education Welfare Officer for consideration which could result in a Fixed Penalty Notice. 

Fixed Penalty Notices may be considered appropriate when:

• At least 10 sessions (5 school days) are lost due to unauthorised absence during a term. These do not need to be consecutive

• At least 10 sessions (5 school days) are lost due to unauthorised leave of absence during a term or delayed return from extended holidays

• Persistent late arrival at school after the register has closed (recorded as a U code) during a term. “Persistent” means at least 10 sessions of late arrival

• Truancy, where the child has come to the attention of the Police or public during school hours for being absent from school, without an acceptable reason