Attendance

Report an Absence

If your child needs to be absent from school for any reason please contact the Academy by 8 am on each day of absence.  Please contact the Attendance Team on our direct line, 01228 822070 or alternatively if ringing the main switchboard on 01228 822060 please select,  Option 1.

If we have no contact regarding your child’s absence a text message will be sent by the academy. It is of vital importance that you respond to the text to ensure that your child’s whereabouts are known and that they are safe. A phone call will also be made by your child’s Form Tutor or Head of Learning.

Please endeavour to keep health appointments to the beginning or end of school days thus allowing at least half a day education and provide evidence of appointment letter, appointments card, text etc.  If your child is absent for 5 or more days we request that medical evidence of some kind is provided to cover absence, this is to help in avoiding any unnecessary involvement from the Attendance Officer and Inclusion Officer from the Local Authority due to medical reason.  The Head of Learning and Attendance Team will support your child to return.

It is vital that all students maintain attendance of 95% or above. Please note any student with attendance below this will have any absence unauthorised unless medical evidence can be provided, or the absence is preauthorised by the academy.

COVID-19

If you child has any of the Covid-19 symptoms your child must stay at home and request a test. Your child cannot return to the academy until we have received confirmation of a negative result. You can either call the academy or send the result to attendance@rrca.org.uk . Please be reassured that if your child is off with Covid, self-isolating or with symptoms their absence is authorised and does not impact on their overall attendance.

Leave during term time

We strongly discourage student leave in term time.  The Principal will only approve holidays in exceptional circumstances. If you must remove your child from the Academy please complete an absence request form. This form is available from Reception. If the leave is not authorised you may receive a Penalty Notice Fine. 

See downloads below for the Leave form.

Attendance matters

Student attendance is a high priority at Central Academy.  We will take appropriate actions to ensure that all students achieve the maximum  possible attendance and that any problems that impact attendance are acted on as quickly as possible.  This support for attendance is achieved through our Pastoral, Academic and Attendance Team.  The Department for Education (DfE) announced that any student whose attendance falls below 90% will be classed as a Persistently Absent student.

• 90% attendance = ½ day missed every week
• 90% attendance over 5 years of school = ½ a school year  missed
• 1 school year at 90% = 4 whole weeks of lessons missed, that’s 120 lessons
• 5 minutes late every day = 18 lessons lost each year
• 15 minutes late each day= 60 lessons lost each year
• 30 minutes late each day =120 lessons lost each year

There has been recent evidence that poor attendance can have a significant impact on the achievement of students:

As part of our attendance policy Central Academy will use a range of strategies to promote student attendance. The range of rewards and sanctions will include:

• Regular rewards and recognition for 100% or improved attendance
• Tutor attendance discussions
• Attendance report
• Parental Meeting
• Written warnings
• Attendance Panels
• Visit from the Local Authority
• Penalty Notice
• Prosecution

Please find further information on our attendance policy and procedures in the policy below.