Attendance at school is of the greatest importance to us at Holy Family.  We want the children to look forward to coming into school and ready for their day of learning.

If your son/daughter is unwell please call the school office - 01376 513418 to let Mrs Buet know by 9:30am.  If we have not heard from you Mrs Buet will phone you.  

Because there are strong partnerships between home and school, attendance has always been excellent at Holy Family.  We aim for 100% attendance, but as a minimum 95%.  If we find a child's attendance is falling below this, and the amount of absences are growing, we will contact you to discuss how we can support.

Help get your child to school (Information from Essex)

It is your responsibility to ensure your child arrives school on time.

You can help your child get to school on time by:

• establishing a good routine in the mornings so your child is prepared for the school day ahead
• letting the school know if your child is absent due to illness and keeping them informed
• making time to talk to your child about school each day and find out about homework
• ensuring your child goes to school regularly and follows the school rules
• ensuring regular communication with your child’s school and their teacher
• attending parents’ evenings and school events

There may be reasons why your child doesn’t want to go to school. Let them know that you and the school will work together to help and support them.

If you have concerns about your child's attendance, contact the school for help and advice.

GOV.UK has more information and advice to help you get your child to school.

When your child can miss school

You must get permission from the headteacher if your child needs time off school.

Your child is only allowed to miss school:

• if they’re too ill to go in
• for medical appointments (At Holy Family we would encourage medical appointments to be made during out of school hours wherever possible)
• for special circumstances like a death in the family
• for religious observance
• because of poor weather conditions (if the school has had to close due to severe weather)

You should let the school know as early as possible if your child needs to miss school.

Taking holidays in term time

You must get permission from the headteacher if you want to take your child out of school during term time.

The headteacher will authorise absence only if there are exceptional circumstances. If your request is approved, the headteacher will decide how many days your child can be away from school.

You could be fined for taking your child out of school during term time without the school’s permission.

At Holy Family exceptional circumstances would include: A religious ceremony.  It would not include for example birthdays, a late night. We also cannot authorise leave of absence due to the cost of a holiday.