On this page you can find information about:
- Attendance
- Procedures for reporting an absence from school
- Punctuality
- Procedures if late collecting your child at the end of the day
- Information about requesting exceptional leave from school
All children between the ages of five and sixteen are required by law to receive an education, and it is the duty of the parents and carers to ensure that they do.
Regular attendance at school is vital to help children achieve and get the best possible start in life.
If your child/ren is/are ill on a school day, you must inform the school of their absence by 9.00am on the first day that they are ill.
You must contact school on 0113 2558719, stating your child’s name, class and reason for absence. There is an option on the phone system to leave a message.
If contact has not been made by 9.00am, school will make contact with the child’s family to request an explanation of their reasons for absence.
This is an important safeguarding procedure and - where we are unable to establish first day contact – we may visit the home of the absent children to verify their whereabouts and ensure their safety.
If your child is expected to be absent for more than one day, you MUST make contact with school on each day your child is absent, to keep us informed of your child’s illness.
Please let us know about dental/medical appointments which may entail your child missing all or part of a session and provide evidence. If your child needs to attend a medical appointment during school hours please report to the school office to ‘sign in / sign out’ your child as appropriate.
It is really important that children arrive at school on time. If your child misses the start of the day they can miss learning and do not spend time with their class teacher getting vital information and news for the day. Pupils arriving late also disrupt lessons and it can be embarrassing for the child. It can also encourage absence. If you need help or support getting your child to school on time, please contact school.
School starts at 8.45am. Registration takes place between 8.45am-8.50am. If your child arrives after 8.50am, then they must come into school via the office. The school office staff will enter the child's name and reason for being late onto the computer sign in system. Arriving late, between 8.50am and 9am, your child will receive a 'late before the register closes' mark. The registers close at 9am in the morning. In the afternoon, registers close 15 minutes after the start of the afternoon session.
In accordance with the Regulations, if your child arrives after the register is closed, they will receive a mark that shows them to be on site, but this will not count as a present mark and it will mean they have an unauthorised absence. This may mean that you could face the possibility of a Penalty Notice if the problem persists. If your child has a persistent late record you will be asked to meet with the Headteacher and/or Attendance Lead to resolve the problem, but you can approach us at any time if you are having problems getting your child to school on time.
It is important that any child who is late, informs the office of their arrival as it ensures the registers are accurate. The registers are used in the case of evacuation to check that everyone is safely accounted for.
Parents are expected to collect their child on time at the end of the school day. We recognise that there may be occasions, when there are unforeseen circumstances, leading to a parent being delayed getting to school to collect their child. Any children who are not collected on time at the end of the school day, will be taken to the school office area to safely wait to be picked up.
If parents are delayed, please contact the school office on 0113 2558719 as soon as possible. If we do not hear from a parent who is late to collect, we will attempt to make contact with all the other emergency contacts we hold.
Parents and carers of children who are regularly late collecting their child will be contacted to find ways of resolving the issue.
In extreme circumstances, if a parent failed to collect and no other emergency contacts could be contacted, by 6pm the school would have to contact Children’s Social Care and make a referral.
By law, parents must ask permission for their child/ren to miss school in advance. If not, they risk being issued with a penalty notice. When a school doesn't give permission, the absence is unauthorised and will be recorded on your child/ren's register.
The Government issued amendments to the school attendance regulations which came into force from September 2013. From September 2013 a Headteacher may not grant any leave of absence during term time unless there are exceptional circumstances; a family holiday would not be classed as exceptional circumstances.
If a parent/carer wishes to put in a request for extended leave from school, please download the form below or request a copy from the school office. Complete the form and return it to school together with evidence of your holiday booking, including flights where applicable. Alternatively you may email this to info@farsleyspringbank.co.uk. Parents/carers will receive a written response from the school within 10 working days. If the leave of absence request is not considered to be exceptional circumstances, it will be declined by the school. The application form will be returned to parents/carers stating this. If the leave is still taken despite the request not being authorised, a referral may be made to the Local Authority Attendance Team, which could lead to parents/carers incurring a fixed penalty fine of up to £120 per child. Please note, the penalty fine increases to £80 per parent per child from August 2024.