At St Mary’s, we are committed to nurturing confident, curious learners who feel safe, included and inspired. Daily attendance is more than a routine — it’s a gateway to opportunity. When children are in school consistently, they benefit from high-quality teaching, rich pastoral support, and the full breadth of our curriculum and enrichment offer. Good attendance helps pupils build strong relationships, develop resilience, and make the most of every moment in our vibrant school community. We work in partnership with families to ensure every child is present, engaged and thriving — because every day really does count.
Requesting a leave of absence
Parents must request permission in advance from school for leave of absence for any reason, including holidays. Headteachers cannot grant leave during term time unless there are exceptional circumstances and cannot grant permission retrospectively. Generally, a need or desire for a holiday or other absence for the purpose of leisure and recreation would not be an exceptional circumstance. If you are needing to take an unavoidable leave of absence for your child please complete this form, which will be sent to Mrs Smith our Administrations Officer.
Our School Day
| 8:30 | School Gates Open and registration Opens | All pupils make their way straight to their classrooms for registration and early morning work |
| 8:50 | Registration Closes | Any pupil arriving after 8:50 is classified as late (as is currently the case) U – from 9:15 |
| 12:00 | Lunch Time | Whole school lunches and play time |
| 3:00 | Reception lessons finish | Reception lessons are finished and children are dismissed |
| 3:10 | Key Stage 1 lessons finish | Lessons for Years 1-2 finish and children are dismissed |
| 3:15 | Key Stage 2 lessons finish | Lessons for Years 3-6 finish and children are dismissed |
Our School Day
Pupils arriving after 8:50am must enter school by the main entrance and report to Reception where you will be asked to sign them in.
Lateness
Pupils arriving after 8:50am must enter school by the main entrance and report to Reception where you will be asked to sign them in.
Absence
When your child is unwell and absent from school you should contact the school office to report the reason for your child’s absence before 10.00am. You can contact the office by sending an email to [email protected] . Alternatively, you can leave an answerphone message by calling 01303 251390 and selecting 1 for student absence.
If your child has a medical appointment during school hours please ensure the letter/appointment card or text message regarding the appointment is emailed or shown to the office so they can make a note and inform the class teacher of the details.
It is important that you report your child’s absence so that we know why they are not in school. If we are not informed of the reason for your child’s absence, we will call you after 10.00am to discuss this. If we are unable to reach you, the absence will be marked as unauthorised until you have made contact.
National Thresholds
From September 2024, schools will consider a Penalty Notice if a pupil misses 10 sessions of unauthorised absence in a rolling period of 10 school weeks. Half of a day (am or pm) is considered as a ‘session’. The threshold of 10 sessions can be met with any combination of unauthorised absence, for example, eight sessions of unauthorised holidays in term time and two sessions for other unauthorised reasons. The ten school week period may span different terms or school years, for example: 2 sessions of unauthorised absence in the Summer Term and a further 8 in the Autumn term.
Penalty Notices
Under the new national framework, Fixed Penalty Notices will be considered when a child has missed ten or more sessions (five days) due to unauthorised absence in a period of ten school weeks.
Penalty Notices (fines) charged to parents will be £80 (if paid within 21 days) or £160 (if paid within between 22 and 28 days). Where a penalty notice is unpaid, legal action would be pursued by the Local Authority. Under the new framework, only two penalty notices can be issued to the same parent for the same child within a three-year rolling period. Where a second Penalty Notice is issued to the same parent for the same child, the charge will be £160.
| Paid within 21 days | ||
| Total for 1 parent | Total for 2 parents | |
| 1 child | £80 | £160 |
| 2 children | £160 | £320 |
| 3 children | £240 | £480 |
| Paid within 28 days | ||
| Total for 1 parent | Total for 2 parents | |
| 1 child | £160 | £320 |
| 2 children | £320 | £640 |
| 3 children | £480 | £1440 |
If a third offence is committed within a three-year rolling period, legal action/prosecution would be considered.
At St Mary’s C of E Primary Academy, we are passionate about our children’s attendance and know that attending school is the most effective way to improve their life chances and future opportunities. We expect all children to attend school regularly and those families who struggle to send their child to school are fully supported.