Absence
We expect student to attend College every day that they have lessons, and attend their academic review appointments. They should be in College on time to attend all registration periods and be punctual for all lessons. In some very exceptional circumstances, as described below, absence will be authorised but students should not take holidays during term time, should seek medical appointments outside of College hours and parents should provide written explanations for any absences that their children may have, Our target for attendance is 97% or higher.
How to let us know your child is absent:
Our Attendance Policy states parents/carers must contact the College before 0830, every day their child is absent; please call 01752 201020 and leave a message (you can do this even if you get an automated message saying the College is closed) or you can send an email to studentabsences@sjhcsc.co.uk.
Please be specific when confirming the reason for your child's absence and explain their symptoms if they are unwell.
Exceptional circumstances to authorise absence:
- Genuine illness
- Medical appointments (routine medical/dental check-ups should be made out of school hours whenever possible). Your child is expected to attend school before and/or after the appointment (evidence of appointment is required)
- Days of religious observance (you'll need authorisation from the school at least four weeks before the event)
- Transport that wasn't provided by the Local Authority when it should have been
- Unavoidable cause
- A specified, limited period for an immediate family member's bereavement, crisis or serious illness
- A funeral of an immediate family member
- A specified, limited period for children of service personnel about to go on deployment (evidence is required)
- A one off sporting events/performing arts competitions if your child is participating and is at county standard or above (evidence is required)
Absence should not be authorised for reasons such as:
- Caring for other family members
- Birthdays
- To interpret for family members
- Having no school uniform
- Having no school shoes
- Bullying
- Friendship problems
- Head lice or nits
- Learning difficulties
- Family holiday
- Weddings abroad (even if it's immediate family)
- Family anniversaries
- Death of a pet
- Travel problems
- Attending immigration interviews with parents or guardian
- Moving house
- School refusal
- Lateness after the school's registration period ends (Sir John Hunt registers close at 09:00)
Key contacts for absence
| Contact | |
|---|---|
| Mr Michael Carpenter Senior Leader with Responsibility for Attendance | m.carpenter@sjhcsc.co.uk |
| Mrs Jackie Budd Educational Welfare Officer | j.budd@sjhcsc.co.uk |
| Miss Fiona Kingston Attendance Officer | attendanceofficer@sjhcsc.co.uk |
| Mr Lewis Kershaw Year 11 Pastoral Leader | l.kershaw@sjhcsc.co.uk |
| Mrs Nicki Davies Year 11 Inclusion Lead | n.davies@sjhcsc.co.uk |
| Mr Nathan Holliday Year 10 Pastoral Leader | n.holliday@sjhcsc.co.uk |
| Mrs Christina Couling Year 10 (& 9) Inclusion Lead | c.couling@sjhcsc.co.uk |
| Mr Liam Salter Year 9 Pastoral Leader | l.salter@sjhcsc.co.uk |
| Mrs Christina Couling Year 9 (& 10) Inclusion Lead | c.couling@sjhcsc.co.uk |
| Miss Luisa Warring Year 8 Pastoral Leader | l.warring@sjhcsc.co.uk |
| Mr Sean Walton Year 8 (& 7) Inclusion Lead | s.walton@sjhcsc.co.uk |
| Mr Jason Beynon Year 7 Pastoral Leader | j.beynon@sjhcsc.co.uk |
| Mr Sean Walton Year 7 (& 8) Inclusion Lead | s.walton@sjhcsc.co.uk |
Important update from the Local Authority from September 2024, relating to the issuing of penalty notices
Please see the following links below that we have been asked to share with Parents from the Local Authority, in relation to the issuing of Penalty notices for unauthorised absence and for what this means for Parents.
Sources of further support
To support parents/carers and their families we have included a number of useful frequently asked questions/links/resources/policies below. If you can't find what you are looking for please do not hesitate to get in touch.
Frequently asked questions
What should I do if my child is not well enough to attend school?
Email or telephone us before 08:30am. Please remember to give us a brief explanation of their symptoms e.g. vomiting, fever, migraine
• Telephone 01752 201020
• Email studentabsences@sjhcsc.co.uk
What should I do if I get a text message or email to say my child is not in school?
If you have forgotten to let us know that your child is ill, then we will send you a text message and an email the same day.
Please reply to this text message to tell us why they are absent (with a brief explanation of their symptoms if they are ill).
What should I do if I get an email to say my child has unexplained absences?
You will get an email if you haven’t let us know the reason for your child’s absence and have not responded to the daily texts/emails.
Please respond to the email with an explanation as to why your child was off. If you do not respond to the email the absence will be coded as unauthorised.
What should I do if I am not sure if my child is well enough to come to school?
Send them into school. We often find the distraction of learning and being with their friends will help them forget they feel a bit under the weather. If during the day they feel worse and we believe they would be better resting at home, we will contact you.
What should I do if my child needs a routine medical/dental appointment?
Your child's health comes first. However, these appointments where possible should be made outside of the school day to minimise the disruption to your child’s education.
What should I do if my child has an appointment during the school day that cannot be rearranged?
You should complete an absence request form (available from reception or our website) and send this in along with evidence of the appointment. If we don’t receive evidence, the absence will be marked as unauthorised.
I have had a letter stating my child’s absence is too high, what should I do?
These are standard letters that come out at the end of each term. They are designed to flag up higher than expected absence and give you the opportunity to get in contact to discuss any concerns you may have so we can work together to resolve these,
Why have I been asked to come in for a meeting about my child’s absence?
We are concerned about your child’s level of absence and we want to work with you to come up with a plan to support them. If their attendance doesn’t improve you could face prosecution and we want to avoid this at all costs. At the meeting we will set some targets aimed at improving your child’s attendance and discuss and implement any additional support they may need to ensure this happens.
You have placed my child on medical evidence; why is this and what can I use as evidence?
When a child has lower than expected attendance and the initial meetings have not succeeded in reducing absence levels, a student might be placed on “Medical Evidence”. This means than any further period of absence must be supported by a medical note from a professional. Evidence can take several forms for example: of a copy of a prescription, a letter from the GP or medical specialist, a signed and dated medical appointment card.
What happens if my child is on medical evidence and I don't provide this?
If we do not have this supporting evidence, we will code the absence as unauthorised this will increases the likelihood of the local authority pursuing a prosecution which we want to avoid at all costs as they put families under enormous pressure so please work with us.
What should I do if I am worried about my child’s mental health?
In the first instance you should visit the Mental Health and Wellbeing pages of our College Website.