Research shows that there is a direct correlation between high levels of attendance and high levels of student attainment.

At Maiden Erlegh School, attendance is well above the national average.  This has a direct, positive, impact on us helping your child get the results they deserve, and having the great school experience they deserve.

Attendance facts

• Students with 90% attendance will have had the equivalent of 1 day off every 2 weeks.
• Students with 80% attendance will have had the equivalent of 1 day off every week.

Punctuality facts

• Being late means students miss out on education, just the same as being absent from school.  It also disrupts learning and teaching.
• 5 minutes missed from lessons or tutor period due to being late every day equates to 3 days lost a year.
• 15 minutes missed from lessons or tutor period due to being late every day equates to 10 days lost a year (2 weeks).
• 30 minutes missed from lessons or tutor period due to being late every day equates to 19 days (nearly 4 weeks).

Everyone gets ill, that cannot be helped, indeed sometimes students are absent because they are on a trip or visit for another subject.  Whatever the reason, missing school is not without consequence on learning.  It is, therefore, important for students to understand that making up the missed work as soon as possible is essential to prevent them falling behind, and take responsibility for that. To do this they can:

• Ask their friends if they can photocopy their work for them.
• Make an appointment with a teacher to go through the missed work.
• Look on Google Classroom.

Reporting Absence

If you wish to report a student absence this can be done by emailing: mesattendance@maidenerleghtrust.org. The email should be sent from the email address that we have registered for the parent on our Management Information System.

Parents are requested to notify the school before 9.00am each day their child is absent. Where a student does not register for a morning session and there is no explanation for that absence, the Attendance Officer will contact the parents to inform them of this. The school day begins at 8.30am and morning registration closes at 8.50am. The end of the school day is 3pm every day.

Medical and dental appointments should not be made during the school day unless absolutely necessary, in which case an email or a signed letter from the parent is required. In addition, students must sign in and out at reception.

Students may only leave the school site with permission from their parent/guardian and the school.  If a student needs to leave school during the day they should report to student services reception to sign out.  In order to sign out they will need a note from their parent/guardian with the day, date and time they should be leaving and a brief explanation of the reason for doing so.  If a student does not have a note then the school will make every effort to contact a parent/guardian but if it is unable to do so we are unable to allow the student to leave school.

As a Wokingham school, we follow the local authority guidance on the issuing of Fixed Penalty Notices, which is:

The issuing of a Penalty Notice will usually be considered appropriate in the following circumstances (these are cited as examples and are not meant to be exhaustive):

• Overt truancy (including pupils caught on truancy sweeps)
• Parentally-condoned absences
• Unauthorised holidays in term-time –5 days or more
• Excessive delayed return from authorised extended holidays without prior school agreement – i.e.2 days
• Persistent late arrival at school (after the Register has closed) - i.e. 10 occasions in a 10 school week period
• Less than 80% attendance, the absences being unauthorised; during a 4-week period
• A pupil having been excluded from a Wokingham School, being found present in a public place, during school hours, without reasonable justification.

To Request a Leave of absence

We do not expect any parents to request permission for holidays for their children during the school term unless there are exceptional circumstances. Any requests should be submitted to the school at least 15 school days before the holiday dates, using this form. The final decision rests with the school.

How attendance is monitored

Attendance is monitored by every teacher and is the responsibility of every teacher.

Where a students’ attendance is at risk of falling below 90%, the attendance team will contact home, so that the school can work in partnership with parents in order to improve behaviour through, for example, meetings, pastoral support plans, etc. The School will encourage parents to make use of outside agencies.

Where to get help and support for your child

In the first instance all attendance enquiries should be emailed to the attendance officer at mesattendance@maidenerleghtrust.org, You can also email your child’s head of year or contact the school reception and ask to speak to the school’s attendance lead Miss Cheshire.