Attendance

At Preston Park, we are committed to providing a world class education to our children, giving them the best possible start in life.

We recognise that this can be achieved by supporting and promoting excellent school attendance.

Our Expectations

Preston Park expects that ALL children will achieve a minimum of 97% attendance regardless of their year group.
Every stage of a child’s education is of equal importance.
Regular attendance at school is a legal requirement and it is vital if your child is to benefit fully from their education.
Any absence can disrupt your child’s education, whether through illness or holidays in term time.
It is very easy to fall behind with work, but very difficult to catch up.
Having a full education will give your child the best possible start in life.
Two weeks absence means that your child loses 60 hours of learning which they can never get back. Your child could miss a whole topic which will not be revisited.
Friendships suffer – during absence, social groups can change – your child may not fit back into the same friendship group on his/her return.

Parent Responsibilities

As a parent, you have a legal responsibility to ensure that your child attends school regularly.

The law states that children should arrive at school on time, every day. Your child should arrive at Preston Park at 8:30am every day for a soft start to the day. We operate Soft Start from 8.30am to 8.40am.

The school gate closes at 8.40. Schools are legally required to take register of pupils 2 times in the day – in the morning before session starts and after lunch time. The class teacher takes the register from 8.40am to 8.50am and the register stays open till 9.15am. The children arriving between 8.45am and 9.15am will be marked as Late.

After 9.15am, the register will be closed. If a pupil arrives between after 9.15am they will be marked as unauthorised absence for the morning.

Poor punctuality is unacceptable and persistent lateness will be referred onto the Brent’s Education Welfare Service. Children that arrive to school after the main gate has closed (at 8:40) must be dropped in to the school main reception by a parent/guardian so they can be signed in. This is to ensure that accurate reasons for lateness are recorded, and also to ensure that children arrive safely to school.

Holidays During Term Time

Taking your child on leave when school is in session means that they miss important school time.

This can have a detrimental effect on their performance.

Schools are closed for 14 weeks during the year. Parents and carers should make every effort to ensure they only take children on holiday during this time.
It is not an acceptable to take your child on leave during school time because the holidays are cheaper or because of overlap with the beginning or end of term. Holidays requested for these reasons will not be authorised.

Only under exceptional circumstances will leave be granted. Please note that the school may ask to provide evidence to authorise leave under these circumstances. All decisions about leave will be made at the discretion of the head teacher who is not obliged to authorise any request.

Parents must apply to the school well in advance if they plan to take leave during the term time. Holidays should not be booked without first consulting the school. Should the request for leave be rejected, the pupil must attend the school.

Pupils taken on leave without permission will be marked in the attendance register as taking unauthorised absence.

This may result in the following:

Fixed penalty notice issued by the Education Welfare Service.
Deletion of the pupil’s name from the register.

Top Attendance Tips for Parents

Talk to your child about how important it is to attend school every day.
Show an interest in what your child has done at school each day.
If you think your child is trying to avoid school, try to find out why? Ask them, ask their friends, ask their teachers.
Help your child to keep to routines, going to bed and getting up at set times, completing homework on the night it is set etc.
Unless avoidable, please do not arrange medical or dental appointments during school hours.
Encourage after school and extra-curricular activities.
Talk to your child's teachers if you notice sudden changes in behaviour.
Remember that habits are formed early. It is much more difficult to get your child to school regularly if you have let them stay at home 'just this once'.

Who to contact in case of absence

If your child is absent please contact school either in person or by telephone via the absence line on 02089043602 as soon as possible on the first day of absence.

If you have not made contact by 9:00am, you may receive a phone call from either our Attendance Officer or a member of the administration team to find out the reason for your child’s absence.