Attendance & Punctuality

All children aged between 5 and 16 are required by law to receive an education, and it is the duty of parents and carers to ensure that they are supported to do so.

Encouraging regular school attendance is one of the most powerful ways you can prepare your child for success—both in school and in life. When you make school attendance a priority, you help your child to develop healthy life habits and social skills, feel more connected with the school community, avoid risk-taking and anti-social behaviour and reach their academic potential.

Children who frequently miss school often fall behind. There is a strong link between good school attendance and achieving good results. For example, only 12% of students with below 80% school attendance achieve five or more GCSEs at a ‘good pass’ or above (grades 4-9) including English and Mathematics, compared to 68% for students with attendance greater than 95%.

The table below details the number of days and lessons of invaluable learning missed over a year with attendance at different levels.

Ensuring excellent attendance requires partnership between the school, student and parent/carer, with each having clear roles and responsibilities:

The Hayfield School will:

Promote good attendance and punctuality and will investigate any unexplained and/or unjustified absence.
Work closely with parents/carers where student’s absence is cause for concern. Should you have a concern about your child’s attendance, please contact their Year Group Leader to talk through how we can work together.
Support students to achieve good attendance and punctuality.
Support students returning to school after prolonged absence.

A Hayfield School student must:

Attend regularly and on time.
Be punctual to all lessons.
Ensure that they register for all timetabled lessons and inform the Attendance Office (School/Reception) where appropriate if they are not able to be registered.
Ensure all messages and notes from parents/carers are taken to the appropriate place.

A Hayfield parent/carer should:

Ensure your child attends the school on those days it is open, dressed in full uniform and equipped to learn.
Ensure your child attends every day The Hayfield School is open unless they are too ill to do so.
Avoid keeping your child away from The Hayfield School for any reason other than illness or other authorised explanation (see below).
Avoid arranging holidays during term time.
Immediately inform the School Attendance Office if your child is unable to attend (by 8.25 am where possible), including the reason for the absence and expected date of return.
Parents should also confirm in writing on their child’s return the reason for their absence. If no indication of a return date has been given, parents/carers should contact The Hayfield School on each day of absence.

Punctuality

Students are expected to be on site for 08:35 am in time for registration at 08:40 am.

Lack of punctuality affects learning and behaviour not only of the student who is late, but it has an impact on all other learners as the teacher is required to recap on missed learning for those who arrive late. Punctuality is also a key workplace skill which must be learnt at school and adhered to.

The Hayfield School gate closes at 8.37am and students arriving after this time are deemed to be late and should sign in at Reception giving their reason for being late.

Attendance & Punctuality

Punctuality

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