School Attendance

Cashel Community School

Attendance Policy 2016/17

School organisations and ethos can make a huge difference to student attendance. In particular, students respond to positive interaction with teachers and to higher teacher expectations. It must be noted that Teacher –Student relations are crucial to a students’ sense of belonging and attendance.

If students do not feel missed then there is a problem. They are tourists in the classroom and not valued members of the school. One of the most important aspects of engagement is students’ attachment at school, which has to do with feelings of being accepted and valued by their peers and by others at their school.

Why some children do not attend school?

The main reasons for non-attendance were bullying, poor relations with teachers, an inability to engage with a large organisation, sickness as well as transitions and transfers.
Quality of relations-mutual respect and being treated in an adult fashion
Poor home/school communications system.
School being viewed as being arrogant towards parents and students.

Source: NEWB report 2008

INTRODUCTION

The Board of Management and staff at Cashel Community School believe that there is a direct relationship between a student’s success in school and regular attendance and those students who have good attendance records enjoy their school experience more than students who do not attend regularly

The aims of the attendance policy in Cashel Community School are to:

Encourage pupils to attend school regularly and punctually.
Share the promotion of school attendance amongst all in the school community.
Inform the school community of its role and responsibility as outlined in the Education (Welfare) Act, 2000.
Identify pupils who may be at risk of developing school attendance problems.
Ensure that the school has procedures in place to promote attendance/participation.
Develop links between the school and the families of children who may be at risk of developing attendance problems.
Identify and remove obstacles to school attendance and offer support to students who need it.
Highlight the need to keep good records of attendance
Develop and encourage more parental responsibility regarding attendance.

“Interagency support is vital to respond to attendance issues effectively.” (Londubh, Ballymun Principals Project)

The Education Welfare Act 2000 provides a comprehensive new framework for promoting regular school attendance and attending to problems of absenteeism. The National Educational Welfare Board (NEWB) was set up under this Act to support regular attendance and the education of children and young people. Since the Child and Family Agency Act 2013 it now operates under the title Tusla-The Child and Family Agency. The principal function of Tusla is to ensure that every child in the State attends a recognised school or otherwise receives an appropriate minimum education. Tusla has appointed Educational Welfare Officers (E.W.O.) to provide advice and support to parents and schools and to follow up absences from school.

The Educational Welfare Officer (EWO) for Cashel Community School is Stuart Moloney

Non-attendance is lower if teaching and learning are personalised, if students feel “missed” and if students like to be at school.

Role of the Class Teacher

Take accurate roll call for each class
Consult with Class Tutor/Year Head about any attendance concerns
Encourage good attendance
Facilitate absent students with catch up material and resources
Report suspicious nonattendance and mitching to the Year Head

Role of the Class Tutor

Check attendance record of the class regularly and especially during Pastoral Care time.
Seek notes for absences
Enter notes on eportal
Encourage good attendance
Establish rapport with students and make them feel part of the school body
Report attendance concerns to Year Head or Attendance Officer

Role of the Year Head

Check attendance records for the year group
Consult with the class tutors
Refer absent students to the Attendance Officer
Consult with the Attendance Officer/Principal/Deputy Principal
Investigate suspicious nonattendance and mitching.

Role of the Attendance Officer

Take referrals from Year Heads and Class Tutors
Consult with Principal/Deputy Principal
Contact parents via phone or letter regarding absences
Monitor school attendance records
Interview students who are showing a pattern of absences
Interview parents/guardian regarding attendance
Improve communication with parents and pupils, parental involvement and student support services
Implement School Attendance Policy
Update staff regarding attendance issues
Refer students experiencing difficulties to the Pastoral Care team.
Liaise with the EWO during in school positive attendance workshops

Role of the Principal and Deputy Principal

Monitor school attendance records
Liaise with TUSLA and EWO regarding students at risk
Make referrals to Tusla for students over 20 days absent without reasons
Put in place procedures to effectively manage punctuality and absenteeism
Implement School Attendance Policy
Liaise with Board of Management
Liaise with Parents

“Good attendance is a habit learnt”

NEWB report 2008

Parental Responsibility

It is well documented that the culture of good attendance is fostered initially in the home through parental attitudes to schools and education. It is imperative that early patterns of nonattendance are acted on with appropriate interventions. Cross school and cross service co-operation is vital to encourage attendance. Open communication between school and parents is encouraged in our school.

Parents are asked to make regular checks on students attendance by speaking about it at parent teacher meetings, checking it on term reports, contacting school when necessary and being open to communication from school about attendance issues.

SCHOOL DAY

All students must attend at the scheduled times every day:

It is recommended to each student and their parents that they try to get to school at least 15 minutes before first class starts in the morning and afternoon. This time can be effectively used to plan for at least the next 3 classes and make sure that students are organised when classes start. We will not facilitate students returning to lockers once class has started.

Monday 9.00am – 3.45pm

Tuesday 9.00am – 3.45pm

Wednesday 9.00am – 3.40pm

Thursday 9.00am – 3.45pm

Friday 9.00am – 3.40pm

Students are expected to be present each day. Students are expected to maintain high standards of punctuality throughout the day.

PROCEDURES FOR MONITORING ATTENDANCE

Subject teachers take registration using Facility E-portal at the start of each lesson.

The class tutor monitors and checks absences during the week and especially during Pastoral Care time on Monday at 1.45pm.During Pastoral Care time (1.45pm on Monday) the Class Tutor will endeavour to match notes to days absent. Explained absences are entered into Facility Eportal. Notes are sought for all absences.

The Class Tutor will notify Year Heads of concerns about student’s absences and emerging patterns. Students with 3-5 days unexplained absences will be referred.

The Year Head of each year group tracks the attendance records of the students on a weekly basis.

This helps to identify, at an early stage, students who are at risk of developing school attendance problems.

Students who reach 5-7 unexplained absences are referred by the Year Head to the Attendance Officer, Mr. T.J.Quinn

The Attendance Officer meets with the students who are referred to encourage them to attend. The Attendance Officer will detail to the student the notes that are required. An informal chat is usually the initial step taken with further monitoring of the students attendance afterwards.

Further absences will result in one or more of the following actions

Letters and/or phone calls home
Interview by Attendance Officer
Student and/or parents invited to fill out the Questionnaire on Attendance

The Attendance Officer obtains a report from Facility Eportal at regular intervals, usually once a week, showing the list of students who have been absent for over a certain number of days.

PROCEDURE FOR RECORDING EXPLANATIONS FOR ABSENCES

Explanations for Absence notes (green colour) are provided to students in the back of their student record book. If a student is absent, an absent note (green colour) must be completed The counterfoil of the absent note must also be filled and must be shown to each subject teacher.

The Class Tutor tracks the attendance records of the students on a weekly basis, most especially during the 15 minutes provided in Pastoral care time from 1.45 to 2.00pm on Monday and if he/she notices that a student has a number of unexplained absences notes should be requested. Any delay in notes being produced should be reported to the Year Head.

The Class Tutor must log the notes provided by the student into Facility Eportal following the procedure provided in Appendix V

SCHOOL ACTIVITY

Absences from class due to participation in a school activity should be recorded as ON SCHOOL BUSINESS and should show on Facility ePortal as SCH.

Students must make every effort to inform their teachers if they are to be absent from class due to participation in a school activity so that they can be accurately recorded on Eportal.

Teachers taking a group away from school should also make every effort to make sure that students are accurately recorded. This includes leaving school after roll call where possible and providing a list of students that are going away on the staff noticeboard,

There is evidence that participation in sports has a positive impact on attendance

It is important to pay attention to lateness. Lateness is often an indication of the beginning of a problem and needs a rapid and intense response.

Procedures for dealing with Lateness

At 9am every morning late students are met by an appointed person inside the front door. Notes are signed, explanations sought and students are sent to class where the class teacher notes them as late on Eportal. Late students are logged in a roll book.
Students who arrive late and are not met by the appointed person must sign in at the office. Their teacher should check their signed note from the office and note them as late on Eportal.
The Attendance Officer will check Eportal after first class in the morning and afternoon for a full list of students marked late. This list is cross referenced with the roll book and the sign in book at the office to pick up late students who haven’t been processed.
Every class teacher should impose their own sanctions for lateness.
Students showing a trend for lateness or who have accumulated a particular threshold number of latenesses are spoken to. Further actions include phoning parents to inform them and seek ways of improving the situation. Some students who are consistently late will be interviewed and a target times routine planner will be filled out with their co-operation to help them to achieve punctuality. (Appendix IX)
If no improvement is made at this point a letter is sent to parents (Appendix VIII) and followed up with a phone call
Supervising staff actively manage the locker areas and encourage students to leave the locker area in time for class.
Students returning from lunch are met at the gate by the Principal to encourage punctuality.
Class teachers who notice a pattern where a student is late coming to their class during the school day can bring it to the attention of the Attendance Officer who will follow up and check their record on Eportal.
Further interventions, if needed, include interview with the Principal/Deputy Principal, meeting with parents, letters home and detention as a last resort.
For sixth year students and students from the town who have parental permission the lunchtime pass is a privilege, which allows them access down town for their lunch. Where this privilege is not fully respected by students returning late to school the Principal will write to parents to revoke the lunchtime pass for a set period. (Appendix IV)

The overriding objective is always to help the student to help themselves and we are tackling lateness with a view to letting the students see the value of punctuality and to let them be aware of the disturbance it causes when they are late.

However no matter how many procedures we put in place there will always be some level of student lateness. There is no doubt that the most effective measure against it is the action of the class teacher. All class teachers are encouraged to continuously use their own class management procedures to combat lateness.

Notes for Absence and Lateness

When a student is returning to school after an absence or coming in late a note clearly explaining the reasons must be presented in their record book on the green pages marked Explanation for Absence/Late Arrival.

The note must contain the relevant date(s) and be signed by a Parent/Guardian. The counterfoil must also be filled with the appropriate dates and signatures.The note must be presented on request by the class teacher, class tutor, Year Head, Attendance Officer or Principal/Deputy Principal.

Students who skip school are more likely to feel that teachers don’t care about them and that they can’t talk to their teacher if there is a problem.

TRUANCY/MITCHING

Truancy is considered an extreme violation of the School Code of Positive Behaviour and incurs immediate sanctions.

In school truancy (where a student remains in the school building but does not attend a timetabled class) incurs lunchtime detention and evening detentions.

After an incident of truancy parents are requested to arrange a meeting with school management alongside the student returning to school. Parents are requested to phone the school for 5 days to check on the student’s attendance.

MEDICAL/DENTAL APPOINTMENTS

Parents/guardians and students are requested not to make medical or dental appointments during school hours.

Where this is not possible, permission to leave the school note (Blue colour) must be completed and handed into the office before 9.00a.m on the day in question.

The administration staff will record the student’s name on the Signing out Book.

When a parent/guardian arrives to collect his/her daughter he/she must sign the Signing Out book and indicate whether or not the student is expected to return.

The administration staff will record the student’s departure from the school on Facility Admin.

In the event of a parent/guardian collecting his/her daughter during lunchtime the member of staff on duty at the office will oversee the correct use of the Signing out Book.

The student is required to sign in on his/her return.

COMMUNICATION WITH PARENTS

Parents are routinely informed of their son/daughter’s attendance and punctuality record through the mid-term and mock examination reports.

A letter L1 is sent to parents/guardians once a student has been absent in excess of 5 days (Appendix 1) and again when a student is absent in excess of 10 days L2 is sent (Appendix II).

Individual subject teachers can track a student’s attendance for their given subject using Facility E-portal and are encouraged to contact a parent/guardian if concern arises about absenteeism for a particular subject.

When a Year Head has a specific concern about an individual student he/she may arrange a meeting with parents/guardians

When a Class Tutor or Year Head notes that a student has not presented signed notes explaining his/her absences to the office, the Year Head will contact the parents/guardians bringing their attention to the matter and requesting that explanations be presented.

Teachers have access to the attendance records of all students through the use of Facility E-portal.

Teachers can access the specific attendance record for each of their teaching groups using Facility E-portal.

If information is received from parents in relation to a student’s absence, teachers are notified of this through the noticeboard in the staff room or through regular updates distributed to staff by the Attendance Officer.

REWARDING STUDENTS FOR ATTENDANCE

Positive feedback from teachers and positive affirmations about good attendance in the classroom environment is encouraged.

Students who have full attendance in any given year are presented with a Certificate of Attendance at the end of the year.

Students with good attendance records will consciously be praised by the Principal, Deputy Principal and Year Head at assemblies and other appropriate gatherings.

In yearly reviews of performance carried out with senior students, attendance will be highlighted as a key feature.

There is no one solution or ‘magic bullet’ to school attendance. The approaches that are often the most successful are developed as to address particular circumstances and are characterised by flexibility and pragmatism.

(IPSOS MORI and The Amsterdam Project)

Appendix IX

Routine Planner

To help you BE IN CLASS ON TIME

Name: ———————————

Set the alarm for ————-
Get up at ————-
Leave the house at ————-
It takes me ————— to get to school
I will be in school at 45 am every morning.
I will be at my locker at 50
I will leave my locker by 55
I will be at my class by 00

I will BE IN CLASS ON TIME

Signed —————————–

Date —————————–

Appendix X

Cashel Community School

Procedures for dealing with Lateness

At 9am every morning late students are met by an appointed person inside the front door. Notes are signed, explanations sought and students are sent to class where the class teacher notes them as late on Eportal. Late students are logged in a roll book.
Students who arrive late and are not met by the appointed person must sign in at the office. Their teacher should check their signed note from the office and note them as late on Eportal.
The Attendance Officer will check Eportal after first class in the morning and afternoon for a full list of students marked late. This list is cross referenced with the roll book and the sign in book at the office to pick up students who haven’t been processed.
Every class teacher should impose their own sanctions for lateness.
Students showing a trend for lateness or who have accumulated a particular threshold number of lateness’s are spoken to. Further actions include phoning parents to inform them and seek ways of improving the situation. Some students who are consistently late will be interviewed and a target times routine planner will be filled out with their co-operation to help them to achieve punctuality.
If no improvement is made at this point a letter is sent to parents and followed up with a phone call
Supervising staff actively manage the locker areas and encourage students to leave the locker area in time for class.
Students returning from lunch are met at the gate by the Principal to encourage punctuality.
Class teachers who notice a pattern where a student is late coming to their class during the school day can bring it to the attention of the Attendance Officer who will follow up and check their record on Eportal.

Appendix VIII

Letter re Punctuality

Dear Parent,

It has come to my attention that your son/daughter xxxxxxxx has been late for school or class on at least xxxxxxxxx occasions since the start of the school year. I have made a number of unsuccessful attempts to connect with you by phone on this issue. I wish to speak to you about strategies we can employ to have xxxxxxxxx on time for class.

I have already spoken to xxxxxxxxx about her timekeeping and the importance it holds for the school that all students are on time, to prevent disruption. I have also introduced xxxxxxxxx to strategies and target times which can help her become more punctual. These strategies involve parental support and understanding to help them be implemented fully.

I would be grateful if you would call the school to make an appointment to meet me as soon as possible to discuss this letter with you.

Yours sincerely,

________________

TJ Quinn

Punctuality and Attendance Officer

Appendix I

L1- Letter 1 re Attendance

Date.

Dear Parents/Guardians of xxxxxxxxx,

I am writing to you regarding xxxxxxxxx’s attendance at school.

xxxxxxxxxx has been absent for more than 5 days. The school has not received any letter or contact from you. You are asked to contact the school as soon as possible to arrange an

appointment to discuss the matter with Mr. T.J Quinn Attendance Officer.

Under the law, every child must attend school regularly up to sixteen years of age or complete at least three years post primary whichever comes later. When your child is absent, you as parent must let the school know the reason for this absence every time. It is school policy that you do this in writing.

Thank you for your co-operation in this matter.

Yours sincerely,

_________________ _________________ ___________________

Principal Attendance Officer Year Head

Appendix II

L2 Letter 2 re Attendance

Dear Parents of xxxxxxxxxxx,

I am writing to tell you a little about the Education Welfare Act, 2000 (amended by the Child and family Agency Act 2013) and about some of the responsibilities we share under the Act.

As you know, a good education gives your child the best possible start in life. A good education helps young people to obtain secure employment and develop into mature and responsible citizens. The purpose of the Education (Welfare) Act 2000 is to encourage regular school attendance and participation in education and training for as long as possible. It is desirable that every child stays in school and completes the Leaving Certificate.

Under the law, every child must attend school regularly up to sixteen years of age or complete at least three years education in a post primary school whichever comes later.

As a parent, you must let the school know if your child is absent and the reason why. It is school policy that reasons must be given in writing. The school will notify Tusla – Child and Family Agency if a child is absent for 20 days or more or where the absence gives rise to concern.

If your child is sick or is absent for other good reasons, no action will be taken by Tusla – Child and Family Agency. However, if there is concern about your child’s attendance at school or about the reasons given, you may be visited by an Educational Welfare Officer who will discuss your child’s education with you. The Officer will work with you and take full account of the circumstances of the child and the family before deciding what further action is necessary to ensure that the child receives his/her entitlement to an education.

Further information concerning the new service and about school attendance matters generally can be obtained from the national Lo-Call Education Helpline –

1890 36 36 66.

At this time we are asking that you respond in writing to explain xxxxxxxxx’s absence.

Yours sincerely,

___________________ _____________________ ________________

Principal Year Head Attendance Officer

Appendix III

L3 Letter 3 re Attendance

16/02/2017

Dear Parents of xxxxxxxxxxx,

I am writing to you regarding xxxxxxxx’s attendance at school. xxxxxxxxx has been absent for a substantial number of days and despite a number of previous attempts we have not been able to establish a reasonable cause for her absences.

The school has written to you and met you about this matter but it has not received a written explanation from you. The school is now very concerned that xxxxxxxxxx is not receiving an education. As you know, a good education gives your child the best possible start in life. A good education helps young people to obtain secure employment and develop into mature and responsible citizens. The purpose of the Education (Welfare) Act 2000 is to encourage regular school attendance and participation in education and training for as long as possible. It is desirable that every child stays in school and completes the Leaving Certificate.

Because xxxxxxxxxxx has now been absent for over 20 days, the school must pass the information to the Educational Welfare Service of Tusla – Child and Family Agency. An Educational Welfare Officer may therefore be in contact with you to discuss the matter further.

If you have any matters you wish to disclose or discuss with us in relation to xxxxxxxxx’s attendance please do not hesitate to contact us.

Regards

______________ ______________ _______________

Principal Year Head Attendance Officer

Appendix IV

Appendix VII

Letter re First Year Absenteeism

Dear Parents/Guardians,

In Cashel Community School we place a high priority on attendance as we see it as the foundation of a high quality learning experience and a good habit for students to develop during their time in school. Regular attendance contributes to higher achievement and better attainment in school.

We ask that all students have a high level of attendance and only in exceptional circumstances should a student be absent. All absences must be fully explained in a note signed and dated by parents/guardians.

We will endeavour to make contact with parents/guardians if there is a noticeable number of absences or if any absences are not fully explained.

It is a cause of concern for us that your son/daughter is showing a pattern of absenteeism lately and because of this we would like you to meet with the Attendance Officer in our school. The purpose of the meeting is to get to understand why your son/daughter is absent and to explore ways of making improvements in their attendance.

We would appreciate it if you would call the office and arrange a meeting time with the Attendance Officer sometime in the coming week.

Yours sincerely,

—————– ——————— — —————–

Principal Attendance Officer Year Head

Appendix VI

Questionnaire on Attendance

Name: ___________________ Class: _________________

Date: ______________ No. of days missed: __________________

Referring Year Head: _________________________

Actions taken to date:______________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Q1. For what reason(s) have you missed these days?

Q2. What do you do when you stay at home?

Q3. Who is at home with you?

Q4. What’s it like for you being at home?

Q5. What steps have you taken to try to get to school?

Q6. Is there anything more you can do to help yourself?

Q7. Is there anything we in CCS can do to help you?

Q8. Are you willing to do academic work while at home?

Q9. Is there any other information you want to give us at this time?

A confidential written report will be submitted to the Principal based on this interview.

Signed: Student: ________________________

Attendance officer: _______________________

School Attendance

Cashel Community School

Attendance Policy 2016/17

INTRODUCTION

School Policies