Student Absence
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At Wildern, we firmly believe that excellent school attendance goes hand-in-hand with student happiness, wellbeing, and academic success. Students who attend school regularly are much more likely to enjoy their learning, achieve their full potential in examinations, and confidently take their next steps into college, apprenticeships, or careers. They also benefit fully from the wide range of social and extracurricular opportunities we offer.
Conversely, irregular or low attendance can cause students to fall behind, leading to unnecessary stress during exam periods. Missing school is not only disruptive to the individual student’s learning journey, but it can also impact the momentum of the entire class. For these reasons, we expect absences to be kept to an absolute minimum.
Requests for Exceptional Leave
To protect your child’s educational progress, Wildern School does not support holidays taken during term time. We strongly request that parents avoid booking family trips while school is in session.
If a term-time absence is absolutely unavoidable due to exceptional circumstances, parents must submit a formal ‘Request to Authorise Absence’ form which can be found in the link below:
Request for Exceptional Leave of Absence Form
This form must be completed and returned to Reception at least one week before the requested absence period.
Please note that to help us consider your request, the school may ask for supporting evidence (such as an official letter or invitation).
Understanding the Impact of Absence
To help visualise how even a few missed days can quickly accumulate and adversely affect your child’s learning, please see the guidance below:
|
Attendance during one school year |
Equates to days absent |
Which is approximately |
Which means the number of lessons missed |
|
94% |
10 days |
2 weeks |
50 lessons |
|
90% |
19 days |
4 weeks |
100 lessons |
|
85% |
29 days |
6 weeks |
150 lessons |
|
80% |
38 days |
8 weeks |
200 lessons |
|
75% |
48 days |
10 weeks |
250 lessons |
|
70% |
57 days |
11.5 weeks |
285 lessons |
|
65% |
67 days |
13.5 weeks |
335 lessons |
What to Do If Your Child Is Unwell
If your child is too ill to attend school, parents must contact us on the first day of absence and continue to call or message every day that they remain off school. When your child returns to Wildern, please provide them with a brief written explanation to hand directly to their tutor.
How to report an absence:
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Email us directly at: absence@wildern.org
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Use the 'Report Absence' feature found under the attendance menu within the Insight parent app.
Expanders
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Working Together: Our Attendance Support Framework
We know that difficulties with attendance can sometimes be complex. If barriers arise, our pastoral team, including the Director of Progress and Achievement (DOPA), the Head of Student Services, will work closely with you and your child to build a supportive, structured action plan. Our pastoral team also meets fortnightly to closely review punctuality and attendance data so we can offer help as early as possible.
When a student’s attendance drops below our benchmark of 95%, we initiate a staged process designed to keep lines of communication open and get the right support in place:
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Stage 0: The student's tutor will make an initial phone call home to let you know attendance has dipped below 95%. This is an informal opportunity to discuss any potential barriers and offer early school support.
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Stage 1: A supportive letter is sent home notifying parents that attendance remains below 95% and is becoming a concern.
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Stage 2: If attendance does not improve, a second letter will invite parents into school for a collaborative meeting. Together, we will look at available support, identify barriers, and co-write an Attendance Contract to help get things back on track.
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Stage 3: If absences continue without improvement, a formal letter will be issued requiring medical evidence to support any further illness-related absences. Without this evidence, subsequent absences will unfortunately have to be recorded as unauthorised.
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Stage 4: Parents will be invited to a formal meeting at the school where a Notice to Improve will be issued.
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Stage 4a: If a parent fails to attend this formal Stage 4 meeting a formal letter will be issued in the form of a Notice to Improve, advising that a Fixed Penalty Notice (FPN) or a referral to the Legal Team will be made if attendance does not improve immediately.
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Stage 5: A final formal letter is sent advising that a referral has been officially made to the Attendance Legal Panel, or a Fixed Penalty Notice has been issued.
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Safeguarding and Punctuality Boundaries
Children Missing in Education (CME)
We have a statutory duty to ensure all registered children are safe and receiving an education. If a student is absent without notice, we will immediately attempt to make contact via phone calls, letters, and home visits. If no contact can be established and we remain concerned about a student's whereabouts, we are required to alert the Local Authority’s Child Missing in Education team.
Punctuality
Arriving on time sets a student up for a calm, successful day. If a student is continually late to school, a formal letter will be sent informing parents that these late arrivals will be recorded as unauthorised. This will automatically trigger our standard attendance procedures. If a student regularly arrives to school after 9am (coded as U) without a valid reason a FPN may be issued.
Our Commitment to You
Wildern School is fully committed to providing advice, strategies, and ongoing support for all parents and guardians who are willing to engage with us. We strongly encourage open, positive communication at every stage so that we can work as a team to protect your child's education and wellbeing.
Quotes
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The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child
Parents are the main people responsible for bringing up a child. When the child does not have any parents, another adult will have this responsibility and they are called a “guardian”. Parents and guardians should always consider what is best for that child. Governments should help them. Where a child has both parents, both of them should be responsible for bringing up the child.