Attendance
We use the Studybugs App to report absences:
https://studybugs.com/about/parents
We discourage all parents from taking their child out of school during term time to take holidays.
Taking your child out of school during term time could be detrimental to their educational progress.There is no entitlement in law for pupils to take time off during the term to go on holiday or other absence for the purpose of leisure or recreation, or to take part in protest activity in school hours, however you may apply to the school for leave of absence in exceptional circumstances. Agreement to each request is at the discretion of the Head Teacher, acting on behalf of the Governing Body (The Education (Pupil Registration) (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2013). If the absence is not authorised and the leave is taken, the matter will be referred to the Local Authority who may issue a Penalty Notice for £160 (or £80 if paid within 21 days) to each parent / carer for each child taken out of school. Failure to submit a leave of absence request may result in the absence being unauthorised and a referral to the Local Authority who may again issue a Penalty Notice as above.
A second Penalty Notice issued within a three year period will result in a fine of £160 per parent, per child. If a third offence is committed the matter may be referred to the local authority for consideration of prosecution via the Magistrates Court. If prosecution is instigated for irregular school attendance, each parent may receive a fine of up to £2500 and/or up to 3 months in prison. If a parent is found guilty in court, they will receive a criminal conviction
Exceptional circumstances do not include:
- Cheap holiday cost
- Getting personal paperwork, visas updated (this should be planned into holiday periods)
- Visiting relatives (this should be planned into holiday periods)
Exceptional circumstances must be:
- Rare
- Significant
- Unavoidable
- Short
Please see the documents below for more information:
Felsted Primary School Attendance Policy