Attendance

Regular school attendance is essential for all of our students to make good progress, achieve their potential and consequently have better life chances. Every student at The Heights, in line with the Government’s expectations, is expected to maintain an attendance level of 95% and above. It is the responsibility of everyone in our school community- parents, pupils, staff and governors to ensure they achieve this.

If a student had:

98% attendance = less than 4 days absent from school
95% attendance = less than 10 days absent from school
90% attendance = 4 weeks absent from school
85% = 5 1/2 weeks absent from school
80% = 7 1/2 weeks absent from school

We appreciate that children are unwell from time to time and that there can be exceptional circumstances for absences, but we ask that parents think carefully about keeping your child out of school as there are clear links between attendance and achievement.

Attendance and Welfare Team

Donna Race
Attendance & Family Liaison Officer
Donna.race@theheightsfreeschool.org
07591 042499

Curtis McInerney
Attendance Support

Helen Morris
Assistant Headteacher for Pastoral & DSL
Senior Leader for Attendance
Helen.morris@theheightsfreeschool.org

Our attendance Team is supported by the wider School’s pastoral and safeguarding team, who meet on a nightly basis along with the DSL, Deputy DSL and Behaviour Lead. Our Attendance Team works closely with Blackburn With Darwen Inclusion Team to support and tackle pupils with poor attendance.

Daily absence procedures

If your child is off for any reason we ask that you contact the school to let us know the reason. Telephone: 01254 261655  You can leave a message for the Attendance Team by pressing option 1.

If we have not heard from you by 9.15 am our Attendance Officers (Donna Race or Curtis McInerney) will ring to ascertain the reason for absence.

Leaving School Site

All pupils must  be on the school site at all times during the school day unless there is a specific reason for leaving.  If you need to leave school to see the doctor or dentist (for example) you must bring a letter from your parent/carer. Ideally these appointments should be arranged outside of school hours.  You will need to show this note to your teacher at the start of the lesson and then again at  Reception when you leave.  You will also need to sign out  at Reception.

If you return to school from an appointment you must sign in at Reception before going to lessons.  You should provide a note the day before for appointments which are first thing in the morning. If you cannot provide a note for attending an appointment or your parent/carer does not notify the school, your attendance may be unauthorised.

Attendance & Family Support

Our Attendance and Family support team are dedicated to supporting pupils and their families, Donna our Attendance Officer is out in the community supporting and visiting families.

The Pastoral Team helps support our pupils by providing Transport from local pick up points to bring them to and from school.

Our Attendance Team works closely with our Safeguarding Lead to signpost families to local support agencies and professionals to ensure they seek and gain the right support during times of crisis and needs. Alongside the Schools Mental Health and Wellbeing Team, we are able to signpost pupils and provide support for pupils and their families to break down barriers to poor attendance.

5 Stages of Attendance Intervention

Intervention 1 – Attendance below 90%. Letter to parents/carers to inform them of monitoring their child’s attendance.

Intervention 2 – Attendance below 75%. Letter to parents/carers to inform them of pupil intervention. Pupil’s will meet with the attendance team to discuss absence and be given targets to work towards. 

Intervention 3 – Attendance below 70%. Letter to parents/carers to attend a parent meeting in school.

Intervention 4 – Attendance below 50%. Letter to parents/carers to inform of referral to Local Authority/Children’s Social Care if we are not aware of any circumstances regarding the low attendance.

Intervention 5 –  Non-attendance and no contact from parents for a period of 10 days will result in a child missing from education (CME) form being submitted to the local authority who will conduct an investigation.