Attendance Information at St John’s CE Primary School 

During the course of the year we do celebrate our children's attendance. We also recognise and celebrate punctuality.  We thank all parents and carers, who send their child to school regularly and on time every day. 

At St John's, our attendance is monitored very closely in partnership with the Education Welfare Department within Reading Borough Council (RBC) /Brighter Futures for Children (BFfC)

Children of school age are legally bound to be in school every day unless they are ill. If children are unable to attend school through being unwell it is requested that the school is contacted by the Parent or Carer to advise the reason for absence.

If a child is absent and the school are unaware of the reason the Parent or Carer will be contacted to establish the reason for absence. Any absences that do not have acceptable reasons against them will be unauthorised.

Good attendance at school is categorised as 95% and above attendance rate.

Children with attendance under 90% will have their attendance and punctuality monitored regularly by the Reading Borough Council (BFfC)  Attendance Support Worker (ASW).

The ASW meets with a representative from the school, usually our attendance lead, Mrs Sumbler,  to discuss pupil attendance and to agree actions to be taken in relation to parents of children with unsatisfactory attendance. The Headteacher, Ms Parsons,  maintains an overview at all times.

Action taken includes but is not limited to; warning letters, attendance panel meetings, Fixed Penalty Notices and court proceedings.

Good attendance and punctuality are crucial to children’s learning.

Parent responsibilities:

• To have children in class ready for teaching by the start of the school day at 8.40 a.m. (or 8.30 a.m./12.30 p.m. if in either Morning or Afternoon Nursery) 
• To inform school on the first day of any absence by telephone
• Comply with the attendance information regarding holidays
• Work with the school and Attendance Support Worker (ASW) to improve lateness and attendance if appropriate

Absences and lateness will be logged by the administrative staff and discussed weekly with the Headteacher.  If the Headteacher is concerned about a child’s attendance, certain steps will be taken to ensure the attendance is improved and that appropriate agencies are contacted.

Please also note the following:

• Holidays during term time can only be authorised by the Headteacher in exceptional circumstances.  Please note especially that if children do NOT return to school on the day specified these absences will be marked as unauthorised and your child’s name passed to the Attendance Support Worker (ASW).

• Lateness is also monitored carefully and we must remind you that it is vital that pupils are in class for the start of lessons. (8.40a.m. start) 

• Parents/Carers must notify the school on the first day of the illness – preferably by phone by 9.30 a.m.

If a pupil misses 10 days schooling during any academic year, that pupil can only achieve 94.7% attendance. Any further absence will mean that they will be further disadvantaged with attendance falling even lower. If a child misses 10 consecutive days from school there is a possibility that they will be removed from the school roll and they will therefore not have a school place. 

All of the above measures are designed to ensure our children at St John’s miss as little school as possible.  Every child matters and every child’s education is vital to their lifelong learning.  Good attendance plays a crucial part in enabling every child to succeed and thus achieve their  potential and flourish. 

For more information on school attendance please visit https://www.gov.uk/school-attendance-absence/overview.

Attendance Policy can be found on our Policy Page:

Policies | St John's CE Primary School (stjohns.reading.sch.uk)