Excellent attendance is considered an absolute priority for all students at Guiseley School. We have set a target of 96% for students across school as we recognise great attendance allows each child to:
- access a broad, balanced and rigorous curriculum and make accelerated progress across all subjects without developing gaps in knowledge which can make learning difficult.
- benefit from school based pastoral, safeguarding and wellbeing support
- develop routines, responsibilities and resilience that establish strong foundations for life
To report an absence please call our attendance team before 8.30am on 01943 872315 for each day of absence. Please ensure you provide your name, child’s name and form group, and clear reason for absence.
Attendance
At Guiseley School we strive for 100% attendance for all of our students. The Department for Education (DfE) guidance is clear that the target for all school children should be 95% or over. There is a clear link between attendance and positive outcomes for children and young people. Research findings and learning from best practice shows that:
- Students must attend regularly to achieve their full potential and improve life chances.
- Students who miss out on school can feel vulnerable and left behind.
- Leave in term time is disruptive and can seriously affect your child’s education.
- On average students who consistently miss 17 or more days in a school year lose one full grade in their GCSEs.
To support your child’s good attendance, you can:
- Book medical appointments outside of school wherever possible (and provide medical evidence of the appointment if this is not possible)
- Book family holidays outside of term time – there are 175 days each year when students are not in school
- Support your child in attending school every day and not allowing them to take time off for minor elements such as those that would not prevent you from going to work. Please see the NHS website for guidance on whether your child is too ill to come to school
- Ensure your child arrives to school on time (Before 8.30am) and ready to learn.
Punctuality
At Guiseley School we are clear that the punctual arrival to school and lessons is a vital part of both attendance to school, and effective learning habits. Students must be in form rooms by 8.30am each morning. Being 10 minutes late to school each day in an academic year is the equivalent time of having missed over 6 school days! Student arriving after 9am, when the registers legally close, will not receive their AM mark and will impact on their attendance figure.
Frequently asked questions
Please take your child out of school for the appointment only – not the whole day. Ensure your child has the appointment card with them to show to their form tutor and at Reception when they sign out of school. Alternatively, you may email evidence of the appointment to us on [email protected]. Appointments without evidence being provided will not be unauthorised. Students must sign back into school at reception when they return.
From 1 September 2013, schools are no longer allowed to authorise any requests for children to be taken out of school for a holiday during term time. You must inform school of the holiday prior to the holiday.
Request for leave can only be granted in exceptional circumstances (a holiday would not be considered exceptional). Requests for leave must also be made to the school in advance, retrospective approval will not be given under any circumstances. The DfE has told schools that they cannot authorise any absences after they have been taken. There is an absence in term time form below to use to make a request.
If your child’s attendance falls below 90% they are classes as a persistent absentee (the government’s number, not ours). Absences will not be authorised unless there is medical evidence to support the absence. You could be referred to the Attendance Service. Parent/carers do sometimes end up in court and may receive fines of up to £1,000. Please see our Attendance Policy below for further information regarding the role of the Local Authority.
- Children and young people with mild symptoms such as a runny nose, sore throat, or slight cough, who are otherwise well, can continue to attend their education setting.
- If your child has tested positive for CoViD-19, is unwell and has a high temperature they should not attend school until they no longer have a high temperature and they are well enough to attend.
- Where a child has tested positive and remains symptomatic, they are expected to work from home for three days or until they are well enough to attend
You can find out more about our approach to attendance in our One Minute Guide to Attendance at Guiseley School.