Broughton Hall Catholic High School - Attendance

Attendance


The Target for every student at Broughton Hall is 100% Attendance and Punctuality

Broughton Hall Catholic High School expects all students to have 100% Attendance. Good attendance will help give your daughter the best possible start in life. Good attendance is also important in building relationships and friendships in school.

Broughton Hall understands the direct correlation between good attendance and academic achievement. Research has demonstrated the higher a student's attendance, the higher their GCSE grades at the end of Year 11. Attendance above 95% every year in school equals one grade difference across all GCSE grades and increases the chances of students achieving a grade 4 or higher in English and Maths.

We expect all our students to aim for 100% attendance as we know that students with high aspiration and attendance go on to achieve better outcomes and live healthier, wealthier, and more enriched lives. Good attendance and punctuality at school is an investment in your daughter's future. By Law children of compulsory school age must receive suitable full time education. As a parent you are legally responsible for making sure that your child attends school on a regular basis. Missing school causes severe disruption to a child's education, and can affect their performance in exams and chances later on in life.


Achieving attendance on or above 97% as well as meeting other school expectations, your daughter will qualify for a range of rewards during the academic year.

It is important to note, if your daughter does not attend school, or is not taking part in an approved educational activity, they are classed as ABSENT from school. This means that if your child is off school for any reason, even if they are ill or have medical permission to be off school, they are classed as ABSENT. Missing lessons leaves students vulnerable to falling behind, creating gaps in their learning and lowering their self-confidence.

Students with less than 95% attendance will not be eligible for school trips unless there have been exceptional circumstances.

Working together to support attendance

Any pupil whose attendance falls below 97% will be referred to the Attendance Officer for strategies to be put in place to improve attendance.

What can you do as Parents/ Carers?
  • Help my child to develop a routine
  • Look at my child timetable regularly to see what they have on in school each day.
  • Don't give in to your child when complaining of feeling unwell unless there are physical signs of illness.
  • Reward your daughter for good attendance. We will also support you in doing this by rewarding for good attendance in school.
  • Help your daughter to be successful at school, ensure homework is done and encourage them to be the best that they can be.

Acceptable reasons for Absence
  • Illness (with obvious physical reasons, otherwise your child must be sent into school)
  • Emergency Dental/Medical appointment (routine appointments MUST be avoided during school day).
  • Family bereavement (Family member must inform the school on the day of bereavement)

Persistent Absence

The Government requires schools to measure attendance by 'Persistent Absenteeism', which is defined as the number of times your child is absent during the year.

A student who is persistently absent is one who misses 10% or more of their schooling for any reason, from the beginning of the school year to the end of any given half term period as indicated below. Please note that one session is equivalent to half a day.

Terms Persistent Absence at 10% Number of days off school
September - October 7 or more sessions 3.5 days or more
September - Christmas 14 or more sessions 7 days or more
September - February 20 or more sessions 10 days or more
September - Easter 25 or more sessions 12.5 days or more
September - May 31 or more sessions 15.5 days
September - July 38 or more sessions 19 days or more

PA (Persistent Absence) is a serious issue and if your daughter falls into this category she will be referred immediately to our School Attendance Officer (depending on reasons behind absences). This could result in Prosecution under Section 444 of the Children's Act and /or a Fixed Penalty Notice being issued. Fines resulting from Prosecution can be up to £2,500 and possibly even imprisonment.

Holidays in term time are NOT permitted. The law gives NO entitlement to parents to take their child out of school for a holiday and those who do WILL be fined.

Reporting a Pupil Absence

If your child is absent, you MUST report the absence before 8:15am via the Edulink App or by telephone on 0151 541 9440 to explain your daughter's absence and give an estimation of when she will return. This must then be followed up with a note from the parent / carer upon her return to school. Your daughter's Year Team will call you to discuss this matter further. In cases of poor attendance we will require a medical note from your GP.

All medical and dental appointments should be avoided and appointments should be made outside of school hours.

By Law children of compulsory school age must receive suitable full time education. As a parent you are legally responsible for making sure that your child attends school on a regular basis. Missing school causes severe disruption to a child's education, and can affect their performance in exams and chances later on in life.

Good attendance is also important in building relationships and friendships in school.

The Attendance Team

At Broughton Hall, good attendance is everyone's responsibility. This is supported with a dedicated team of staff who work on Attendance. This team includes the Attendance Officer, Welfare and Inclusion Officer, Student Support Managers, Heads of Year, Data Manager and the First Day Response Team. Leaders scrutinise our attendance data daily and work closely with Liverpool City Council Education Welfare Services.

As you would expect, we have very high standards and are committed to all our students fulfilling their potential. The Attendance Team are always happy to offer advice and support to students, parents, carers and families on effective strategies for maximising attendance and supporting your daughter in achieving 100% attendance. If you would like further details please do not hesitate to contact School.

Further details can be found in the School's 'Attendance For Learning Policy'.

IT IS VITAL THAT YOU KEEP US INFORMED IF YOUR CONTACT DETAILS CHANGE SO THAT WE CAN STAY IN TOUCH WITH ALL PARENTS ON A REGULAR BASIS. IT IS A STATUTORY REQUIREMENT THAT WE HAVE 3 EMERGENCY CONTACT NUMBERS FOR YOUR DAUGHTER.

We expect our students to arrive to school on time every day as being late to lessons WILL cause disruption to your child and to others. Every student MUST be in school at 8:35am ready for registration at 8:45am. If your child is not in registration, a phone call will be made to the parent / guardian or a text message sent informing you of her absence. This contact will be made regardless of whether she is attending another appointment.

Below is some information about how attendance is categorised:-

  • At 97% a child would be missing a week of school across the whole school year. This would be 25 hours of learning!
  • At 90% a child would be missing nearly 4 weeks of school across the whole year.
  • At 90% a child becomes known as a persistent absentee (PA). This will result in the school involving the Attendance and Inclusion Officers (Mrs Abraham and Mrs Greenhouse) for support.
  • Below 90% this is a serious concern. It is likely to result in a child being referred to the Local Authority for prosecution against the parents.


Please contact Mrs Abraham or Mrs Greenhouse, our Attendance and Inclusion Officers) on 0151 541 9440 for any further information regarding Attendance and Punctuality.

Attendance documentation/ further reading

Safeguarding and Child Protection Information
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