School Attendance

At Havelock we are proud to have above average attendance. We are committed to making sure that every child has outstanding attendance throughout their time with us. There is a focus on positive behaviour at Havelock with an emphasis on de-escalation in a calm and purposeful environment.

We believe that every school day does count; coming to school each day means learning something new every day. We would like to congratulate all of our pupils, parents and carers for their efforts to ensure that they attend school every day, where possible. We have seen a pleasing improvement in our overall attendance figures and wish for this to continue.

The following points are important to note:

• Absences can only be approved in the cases of sickness, medical appointment and religious observance days.
• Children must NOT take holidays in term time. Penalties can be enforced by the Local Authorities.
• A note from parents must support all absences and a note must support telephone calls.
• Absences from school without a valid reason, or for which no explanation has been provided, is treated as an unauthorised absence.
• Children who arrive after the registers are closed [10 minutes after the start of the session] and fail to provide an adequate explanation will be counted as an unauthorised absence.
• If your child is absent from school for a long time through illness, please see your child’s teacher so that suitable work can be arranged for you to take home

If we are concerned about any aspect of your child’s attendance, we will contact you by letter and / or arrange to meet with you in school to discuss how we can resolve the problem. We also work very closely with Ealing’s Education Welfare Team and in cases of persistent absence; they may wish to contact you directly to discuss the problem with you. They have a legal duty to support families with attendance and where there is insufficient progress or cooperation, consider very seriously the use of legal proceedings.

Can we take family holidays during term time?

From 1st September 2013 the rules regarding authorised term time absence were changed dramatically. Headteachers are no longer allowed to grant leave of absence for holidays and will only authorise such requests in exceptional circumstances. Cheaper air fares or mistaking the dates of the school holidays are not acceptable reasons for booking a holiday during term time. The Headteacher will also examine the child’s attendance record and any other significant factors when deciding whether to grant a leave of absence.

For all requested absences a form must be completed and given to the Attendance Officer for consideration. ‘Leave of Absence’ forms are available from the school office.

If you take your child on holiday without permission from the Headteacher or if your child leaves earlier or returns to school later than was stated on the application form, you may be issued with a Fixed Penalty Notice from the Education Welfare team or your child may be taken off the school roll and need to find another school.

Attendance & Punctuality Awards

 We celebrate attendance and punctuality in our weekly assembly with the children. The class with the highest attendance is presented with a cup and a certificate. Additionally, we recognise and congratulate the classes who have good punctuality over the week.

Click here to view our Behaviour and Attendance policies for more information.