Attendance
We would like to remind you of the importance of good attendance in order to maximise the educational opportunities we offer to your child and for them to achieve age related expectation.
We wish to work in partnership with parents and carers so are seeking your full support in ensuring that your child attends school every day and on time. We are always pleased to work together with parents and carers in resolving any difficulties but we are also committed to improving attendance levels at St Joseph’s.
The school day begins at 8.50am and we recommend that your child be at the school gates by 8.40am. This will facilitate a smooth, happy and prompt start to the day for everyone.
Each week, in our celebration assembly, we celebrate the class with the least number of lates and the highest attendance percentage that week. Our weekly attendance and punctuality figures are published in our school newsletter.
The government has introduced new legislation for schools to tackle issues with attendance. This will come into effect from 19th August. See attachment below for a brief explanation of the changes and here for the DfE guidance.
The Royal Borough of Greenwich and St. Joseph’s Primary School are following Government guidance and implementing the ‘Fast Track’ scheme to prevent pupils becoming Persistent Absentees (a pupil that attends less than 90% school attendance). This is a national threshold set by the Government. At St. Joseph’s we expect 97% and above from all pupils to enable your child to have the same education and opportunities as everyone else in the class.
It is also important that you collect your child on time at the end of the day. If anyone new is collecting your child you must inform the teacher and office (and preferably introduce them). For safeguarding and health and safety reasons, we will not allow any child to go home with someone who doesn’t usually collect them or someone we do not know without prior consent, or anyone under the age of 18.
If you need support regarding attendance, please speak to the class teacher in the first instance.
What do I do if my child is unable to attend school
It is very important your child attends school every day unless they are unwell. If they are not able to attend school, you can either call the office, email us or send us a text. Please state your child’s name, class, teacher and reason for the absence. If children are off consistently or for long periods of time, then we may ask for supporting evidence. Please see our Attendance Policy for more information.
What do I do if I am running late collecting my child
Call the office on 0208 858 4182 with an estimated time of arrival.