Parents/Carers Guide to Attendance

 We want to share some important information about why coming to school is so important.

At Mount St Joseph school, we care a lot about pupils coming to school every day. We work hard to make school a calm, friendly, and supportive place where everyone can learn and do their best. We expect pupils to come to school every day and be on time so they can learn as much as possible.

Any pupil whose attendance is below 90% is considered as a ‘persistent absentee’

Why is good attendance important?

Good attendance and being on time are very important for doing well in school and building good habits for the future.

Every lesson is important. Being on time for school makes a big difference. Missing part or all of a lesson can harm your child’s learning.

 

Through regular attendance your child can:

✔ Build friendships and feel part of a community

✔ Learn new things and enjoy academic success

✔ Develop life skills, respect, self-discipline

✔ Minimise the risk of engaging in anti-social behaviour

✔ Engage in extra-curricular activities that may not be available to them outside of school

 

When your child is absent.

  • By law, schools must record all absences and the reasons for them.
  • The school—not the parent—decides whether an absence is authorised or unauthorised.
  • Parents need to provide clear reasons for their child’s absence so it can be recorded correctly.
  • If attendance is a concern, the school may ask for medical proof before making a decision.
  • If parents don’t inform the school about an absence, it will be marked as unauthorised.

 

Why is Punctuality Important?

Students are expected to arrive to school from 8.20am so that they are ready to start lessons at 8.30am 

We expect all children to arrive at school on time, ready to start their day. Being on time helps your child stay prepared and focused for learning. Good punctuality leads to better attendance, which is important for your child’s success.

If a child arrives late after the register closes without a good reason, it will be marked as an unauthorised absence (‘U’), which affects their attendance record. Even if your child comes to school every day but is often late, you could be reported to the local authority because of the unauthorised absences.

MSJ Punctuality Flyer 2025

Arriving on time:
• Sets good habits for adult working life
• Maximises learning time
• Helps your child develop friendships and relationships
• Boosts your child’s confidence and self-esteem
Arriving late:

• Puts your child at an immediate disadvantage to other children who have arrived on time
• Means your child misses important information at the start of lessons
• Can be embarrassing for your child
• Disrupts the lessons for other pupils
• Can damage your child’s confidence and self-esteem

What happens if my child has unauthorised absences? 

By law, all children aged 5 to 16 must get a full-time education. Parents and carers must make sure their child goes to school regularly and on time every day.

The Local Authority (LA) in your area makes sure parents follow this rule. If your child doesn’t attend school often, the LA could take legal action against you.

We’re here to help if you have any worries about your child’s attendance. Please tell the school about any absences as soon as possible, including the reason and if your child will be late.

We want to work with you to solve any problems stopping your child from coming to school. Talking openly with us can fix issues quickly.

How can you help your child have good attendance?

 

Things you can do to support your child’s attendance:

✔ Speak to your child about the importance of school

✔ Take an interest in your child’s schoolwork and their day at school

✔ Celebrate their successes

✔ Tell your child that you do not approve of absence from school for no reason

✔ Report your child’s absence by 9am each day they are off school

✔ If you are not sure an absence is appropriate, ask school for advice

✔ Provide school with more than one emergency contact for your child. This will ensure we can always speak to someone

✔ Work with school to ensure your child overcomes any barriers to attending school

✔ Always be honest about the reasons for absence. Do not be tempted to ‘cover up’ for your child. We cannot help if you are not honest

✔ Discuss any planned absences with school

✔ Do not plan any term time holidays. They will not be authorised

✔ Try and make as many appointments as possible outside of school hours. If an appointment is unavoidable, please provide school with a copy of the appointment. Your child should attend before and after any appointments if possible

 

How you can expect school to support your child’s school attendance.

On the 19th August 2024, a new National Framework for Penalty Notices for school absence was introduced. This includes the following:

  • Penalty for Absences: You may receive a penalty notice for 10 sessions (5 school days) of unauthorised absence in any 10-week period. Unauthorised late marks are included in these sessions’ ‘U’ code. These absences can span different terms or school years. For example, 2 sessions in the summer term and 8 in the autumn term.
  • Penalty Rates: The penalty is £160 if paid within 28 days and £80 if paid within 21 days. If a second penalty notice is issued for the same child within three years, the penalty is £160 with no discount.
  • Limit on Penalties: A parent can receive a maximum of 2 penalty notices for the same child within a 3-year period. For a third or subsequent offence, other actions, such as prosecution or other legal interventions, will be considered.

Contact Information

The school number is 01204 391800 option 1 to report your child absent or email attendance@msj.stoccat.org.uk

If you need to leave an absence message, please give the following information: name of the student, form, reason for the absence. Please ensure that you contact school each day that your child is absent. 

Contacts in School

Pastoral Manager – Mrs Burns dburns@msj.stoccat.org.uk
KS3 Pastoral Care Officer – Mrs Wolstencroft swolstencroft@msj.stoccat.org.uk
KS3 Pastoral Care Officer – Mrs Archer sarcher@msj.stoccat.org.uk
KS4 Pastoral Care Officer – Miss Nolan dnolan@msj.stoccat.org.uk
KS4 Pastoral Care Officer – Mrs Clarke kclarke@msj.stoccat.org.uk
Attendance Officer – attendance@msj.stoccat.org.uk

Information For Parents New National Framework For Penalty Notices

Attendance is Everyone's Business