Beginning of that day

Children may arrive at school from 8:40. Registration begins at 8.50am and is submitted to the office at 9.00am.

Registers are completed again after lunch for all classes and close 5 minutes after lunchtime ends.

A pupil that arrives late for register (between 9.00am and 9.20am) will be marked late (‘L’ recorded in the register). A pupil arriving late after register closes (after 9.20am) will be marked as late (‘U’ recorded in the register.) ‘U’ registration codes indicate and unauthorised absence.

End of the day

Days end for each year group as follows :

• Y3/4 finish school at 3:10pm,
• Y5/6 finish school at 3:05pm.

Please offer other community members space whilst waiting for children to exit school. Meeting your child at a location away from the school gate ensures that the area around the gate does not become overcrowded.

The requirement for children to attend school is set out in law. We require all of our parents and carers to ensure that their children attend school daily and are on time.

It is clear that children alone cannot ensure their regular and punctual attendance at school. Parents and carers are therefore encouraged to take an active interest in the work of the school and to build and support their children’s enthusiasm for attending school.

We ask that if children are to be absent from school, parents and carers should :

• inform the school in person, in writing or by telephone, as soon as practicably possible, with reasons for the absence.
• make routine appointments (e.g. medical, dental) outside of school time.
• ensure children are at school before and after medical appointments (if appointments cannot be avoided during the school day). 
• not take their children on holiday during term time.
• work in partnership with school to positively impact on any attendance difficulties that may arise.

In some cases, where attendance is a concern, parents and carers may be required to provide medical evidence in order for school to authorise the absence.

Sheffield City Council offer advice at: www.sheffield.gov.uk/home/schools-childcare/attendance-guidance-parents

We require our pupils to work hard to attend daily, to be on time for lessons and be ready to learn.

We monitor our children’s attendance at all times and we categorise attendance as follows:

If attendance or punctuality becomes a concern, parents and carers may be requested to a discussion where support for the improvement of attendance or punctuality can be discussed. Discussions will involve school staff and may also involve our Education Welfare Officer, Local Authority Attendance Link or other appropriate professionals, depending on the nature and level of concern.

Great attendance is celebrated in many ways :

Verbal praise – on a daily basis.

Vouchers – Each term, children whose attendance is 97% and above are rewarded with a voucher for a free swimming or skating session courtesy of Sheffield International Venues (SIV).

Piggy Banks – Each class has an attendance piggy bank which they have the chance to add to every week.

£10 for 100% class attendance – £5 for 99% class attendance – £2 for 98% class attendance

Once a class has accumulated sufficient funds, they can spend their earnings on a treat!

Evidence shows that every school day matters in a young person’s education. Students who have good attendance at school have better wellbeing and achieve better results than those who don't.

Requests for term time leave will only be considered in exceptional circumstances. Taking a young person out of school for a family holiday will be marked as unauthorised absence and headteachers are required to consider issuing a penalty notice (fine) to parents.

Headteachers are also required to consider issuing a penalty notice (fine) to parents where there have been 10 sessions (totalling 5 school days) over a 10 school week period. The absences may or may not be on consecutive days.

Information on the government's approach to term time absence can be found at educationhub.blog.gov.uk.

How much are the fines for unauthorised absence during term time?

From August 2024, as part of the government’s national framework for penalty notices, fines issued will be:

• First instance of unauthorised absence:
  • £80 per parent, per child if paid within 21 days.
  • £160 per parent, per child if paid within 28 days.
• Second instance of unauthorised absence (within a three-year period):
  • £160 per parent, per child if paid within 28 days.
• Third and subsequent instances of unauthorised absence (within a three-year period):
  • Other action such as prosecution will be considered. In this circumstance, fines can be up to £2,500 per parent, per child.

Money raised by the local authority from fines is used by that local authority to cover their costs and to fund attendance support. Any remaining money is returned to the government.

If you wish to request term time leave, you should complete the form at the bottom of this page and return to the school for consideration.

At Stocksbridge, we expect punctuality.

Our expectation is that all children will be present on time and ready to begin the day.

The school gates open at 8.40am to allow children to enter the school grounds in good time for registration. Adult supervision is in place from 8.40am.

Registration begins at 8.50am. Registration will close at 9.00am.

All children arriving after 9.00am are considered late. Any arrivals after 9.20am will be marked as an unauthorised absence.

Being punctual allows children to make a good and settled start to the day so that they can engage in and enjoy their learning.

If your child is to be late, we ask that you do not allow them to walk into school alone but ensure that you deliver them to Reception so that you know they are safe and have been handed over to a staff member. This is to ensure your child’s safeguarding. This is also to ensure that we have reliable records of the reasons for lateness to school. It may be felt necessary for a call to be made to parents or carers should a child arrive late and alone to establish the reason for lateness.

We monitor punctuality at all times and contact parents and carers for their support where punctuality becomes a concern.

As a school, we are committed to supporting excellent attendance and punctuality.

Where attendance or punctuality patterns are reducing, we may offer support.

We meet with our education welfare officer each half term to review the attendance and punctuality of our children and to identify where there are concerns.

Where a child’s attendance is nearing or falls below the school target of 92%, we feel it is important to inform parents or carers, even though there may be a legitimate reason for a child’s absence from school. We ask for parent and carer support in all of these cases in order to improve patterns of attendance. Parents and carers will be promptly informed of any concerns and pathways to improving attendance or punctuality will be discussed and agreed.

If an agreed pathway to improvement is unsuccessful and a child’s absence or lateness continue to rise, school will consider involving our education welfare officer or other outside agencies to formalise and enhance the challenge and support offered. Consideration of such cases may involve discussion with local authority colleagues.

Where attendance issues persist, parents risk the possibility of a local authority fine and/or legal enforcement.

We understand that it can be very tricky to get your child to school on time in the morning occasionally.

Help is always at hand – If your child’s attendance or punctuality is a difficulty, please do not hesitate to call us or come and talk to us in school. You might want to contact our education welfare officer, Mr Dale Edwardes, on 07885972039 if you need any support or advice.