Attendance - Print version

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School attendance

Parents and carers have a legal duty to ensure that their children of compulsory school age receive a suitable full-time education. It is also vital that they encourage their child's regular and punctual attendance at school. If a child is registered at a school then it is vital that they attend on a regular basis.

It is important that everyone works together to help children obtain the best possible start in life with a good education. Parents and carers should work in partnership with the school, notifying them of the reason for any absences and highlighting any areas of concern so they can be addressed promptly.

These absences will be authorised by the school following contact with parents or carers. Most schools ask parents to telephone on the first day of absence and then to provide a note when the child returns to school.

Schools may authorise other absences if they consider them to be unavoidable. If possible, parents should always consult with the school in advance if their child is going to be unavoidably absent.

Only schools can authorise absence. Parents do not have this legal authority. Absences not accepted by the school will be ‘unauthorised’. If sufficient unauthorised absence accumulates the school will take steps, such as inviting parents to a meeting to improve attendance.

Truancy is a form of unauthorised absence where a child deliberately misses school. Parents, however, remain legally responsible for this absence.

If you fail to secure your child's regular attendance, you could be prosecuted under Section 444 of the Education Act 1996.

Downloads

Policies and guidance

Attendance and Children Missing Education Team

Please choose Option 1 if you are calling us.

Address: PO Box 15
Council House
Earl Street
Coventry
CV1 5RR

Telephone: 024 7697 5434 [tel:02476975434]

Fixed Penalty Notices

Fixed penalty notices can be issued to parents or carers if the children in their care are absent from school for any of the following reasons:

  • Holiday/leave of absence taken during term-time.
  • Irregular attendance including persistent late arrival to school (after registration has closed) – 10 or more sessions within a current five week period.

A fine of £60 for each child is issued to each parent or carer. If the fine is not paid within 21 days, another £60 fine will be issued; both must be paid within 28 days of the date when the original fine was issued.

Decisions on whether to allow a leave of absence during term-time are made by individual schools, not the council.

Can I appeal my fixed penalty notice?

There is no right to appeal. Fines will only be withdrawn if they are found to have been issued in error. If you believe an absence has been classified incorrectly and wish to challenge the reasons given, you need to take this up with the school in the first instance, as whether or not the council issues a fine depends on how schools classify an absence.

Types of penalty notices

There are two types of penalty notices – holiday/leave of absence during term-time and irregular attendance.

Holiday/leave of absence during term-time

The Education (Pupil Registration) (England) Regulations 2013 came into force in September 2013 and amended the 2006 regulations removing the reference to 'holiday' and 'extended leave' as well as the statutory threshold of ten school days. The amended regulations state the head teacher (or authorised person) may not grant any leave of absence during term-time unless there are 'exceptional circumstances' that apply to that application. The head teacher should consider each application on a case-by-case basis and on its own merits. It is at the head teacher’s discretion if the exceptional circumstances warrant the authorisation of the leave and should also determine the number of days the pupil should be absent for. Head teachers should make clear to parents the date on which the pupil will be expected to return to school. All requests for leave of absence must be made in advance and by the parent/carer with whom the child normally resides.

A penalty notice will be issued when leave of absence has been taken but the school have not received and authorised a request in advance (where it can be clearly demonstrated that the parent/carer understood that permission had not be given).

Excessive delayed return from holiday: Where leave has been granted by the head teacher, an agreed return date should be discussed and what will occur if the pupil fails to return to school on the date stated. The Education (Pupil Registration) (England) Regulations 2006 also enable schools to remove from their roll pupils who have failed to attend on the agreed return date. Following this date, reasonable enquiry should occur by the school and local authority to ascertain the pupil’s whereabouts in an attempt to locate the pupil prior to removal.

Irregular attendance

When a pupil persistently arrives late, schools should investigate the reason for this and offer support where appropriate to rectify the situation. Where the arrival time is after the close of registration period (DfE guidance states the register to pupils should close up to 30 minutes after the register was taken), each school has its own policy stating when the registration will close. If you are later than the close of registration, an unauthorised absence should be recorded. The same process applies when requesting and issuing a penalty notice.

Coventry City Council will issue a monitoring period, where at least 10 sessions (5 school days) are lost due to unauthorised absences in any current 5 week period. The local authority shall consider the issue of a penalty notice if further unauthorised absence occurs and the following is in place.

Monitoring a penalty notice

The local authority will monitor and evaluate the outcomes of penalty notices in terms of improvement in school attendance, payment and any subsequent legal action.

The use of the notices will be reviewed at regular intervals and the enforcement strategy of the local authority may be amended accordingly.

As part of the administration of penalty notices and on behalf of the local authority, data will be provided at the beginning of each academic year to the parental responsibility and behaviour data collection.

Payment of a penalty notice

By phone

Please telephone the Attendance team on 024 7697 5434 (opt 1) with your debit/credit card, Monday to Thursday 9am to 4.30pm and Friday 9am to 4pm. Please note we do not accept American Express Cards.

In person or by cash

You can pay by card, cash or cheque at our Customer Service Centre, Broadgate, Coventry, CV1 1FS, Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm (excluding Bank Holidays). You will need your reference number.

Online

You can pay online at any time at www.coventry.gov.uk/payonline [http://www.coventry.gov.uk/payonline]. You will need your child’s name and school, and your debit or credit card details.

Unpaid penalty notices

If payment is not received within 28 days, the local authority will take action and consider prosecution for the unauthorised absence. A letter is sent to the parent informing of the local authority’s intention to pursue legal proceedings for the period of absence in question.

The instigation of legal proceedings for unauthorised absence from school under S444 (1) or S444 (1A) of the Education Act 1996 may also be considered where it is deemed to be appropriate. The prosecution is not for the non-payment of the notice but for failure to ensure regular attendance at school.

Withdrawal of a penalty notice

Once a penalty notice has been issued, it can only be withdrawn in the following circumstances:

  • It ought not to have been issued, i.e. where it has been issued outside the terms of the Code of Conduct or where no offence has been committed;
  • It has been issued to the wrong person;
  • It contains material errors;
  • Or if parents or carers believe an absence to have been classified incorrectly. They need to take this up with the school rather than the council as schools determine how an absence is classified.

Downloads

Holiday / leave of absence template letters

Attendance and Children Missing Education Team

Please choose Option 1 if you are calling us.

Address: PO Box 15
Council House
Earl Street
Coventry
CV1 5RR

Telephone: 024 7697 5434 [tel:02476975434]

Parenting contracts

A Parenting Contract is a voluntary agreement between a parent and/or carer, the school and the Local Authority (LA), in order to improve the attendance of children and young people.  This intervention identifies clear actions, with all parties named being accountable for their roles and responsibilities.  This may be used in evidence and presented to the Magistrates Court, should it be deemed that an offence has been committed under Section 4441a of the Education Act 1996.

Section 444 – Education Act 1996        

Offence: failure to secure regular attendance at school of registered pupil.

(1) If a child of compulsory school age who is a registered pupil at a school fails to attend regularly at the school, his parent is guilty of an offence.

1(1A) If in the circumstances mentioned in subsection (1) the parent knows that his child is failing to attend regularly at the school and fails.... to cause him to do so, he is guilty of an offence.

At each meeting an agreement is drawn up based upon the full assessment of the situation. This agreement clearly identifies each party’s responsibilities for resolving the presenting problem. Where the parental actions agreed at the Parenting Contract Meeting are not complied with and unauthorised absence continues, legal intervention will be instigated against the parent(s)/carer(s).

Attendance and Children Missing Education Team

Please choose Option 1 if you are calling us.

Address: PO Box 15
Council House
Earl Street
Coventry
CV1 5RR

Telephone: 024 7697 5434 [tel:02476975434]

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