Absence
What to do if your child is ill
Lots of parents have contacted us asking what to do in different situations. Below is a basic guide to follow. However, please also check out the latest NHS advice if you are unsure.
You can contact the NHS by calling 111 or going to the NHS website.
Regular school attendance is crucial in raising standards in education and ensuring that every child can have full access to the school curriculum and reach their potential.
Silverdale School will strive to promote an ethos and culture which encourages good attendance and where each pupil will feel welcomed, valued and cared for.
Silverdale School has high expectations of all students in order to achieve the vision of ‘Outstanding Achievement for All’.
Illness
Years 7-11
If your child is unable to attend school due to illness, parents and carers should call the absence line on 0114 2369991 and select option 1 before 10am with the reason for the child's absence.
The attendance officer will contact the parent or carer at 10.30am to alert them to the child’s absence from school, if a reason has not already been given. The attendance officer will follow up with additional contact if attendance is a cause for concern. If no reason has been provided by the parent or carer, a letter will be sent home asking for a reason for the absence. The absence will be classified as unauthorised until a reason is presented.
Sixth Form
If you are unable to attend school due to illness, you (or your parent/carer) must notify school by telephone(236 9991) or by email to absenceks5@silverdale.chorustrust.org before 9.00am on the first day, and subsequent days of absence.
Please follow prompts to report an absence then Years 12 & 13, leave a message clearly stating the student's name and reason for absence. This will be picked up by the Sixth Form Team in due course.
If a student is absent for a period of over 5 school days, medical evidence may be requested.
COVID-19
Regular asymptomatic testing is no longer recommended in any education or childcare setting, including in SEND, alternative provision and children’s social care settings. Schools will no longer give out test kits to staff or pupils.
Children and young people who are unwell and have a high temperature should stay at home and avoid contact with other people. They can go back to school when they no longer have a high temperature, and they are well enough to attend. For children and young people aged 18 and under with a positive test, the advice will be they should try to stay at home and avoid contact with other people for 3 days.
Requests for term time leave
Evidence shows that every school day matters in a young person’s education. Students who have good attendance at school have better wellbeing and achieve better results than those who don't.
Requests for term time leave will only be considered in exceptional circumstances. Taking a young person out of school for a family holiday will be marked as unauthorised absence and headteachers are required to consider issuing a penalty notice (fine) to parents.
Headteachers are also required to consider issuing a penalty notice (fine) to parents where there have been 10 sessions (totalling 5 school days) over a 10 school week period. The absences may or may not be on consecutive days.
Information on the government's approach to term time absence can be found at educationhub.blog.gov.uk.
How much are the fines for unauthorised absence during term time?
From August 2024, as part of the government’s national framework for penalty notices, fines issued will be:
- First instance of unauthorised absence:
- £80 per parent, per child if paid within 21 days.
- £160 per parent, per child if paid within 28 days.
- Second instance of unauthorised absence (within a three-year period):
- £160 per parent, per child if paid within 28 days.
- Third and subsequent instances of unauthorised absence (within a three-year period):
- Other action such as prosecution will be considered. In this circumstance, fines can be up to £2,500 per parent, per child.
Money raised by the local authority from fines is used by that local authority to cover their costs and to fund attendance support. Any remaining money is returned to the government.
If you wish to request term time leave, you should complete the relevant form at the bottom of this page and return to the school for consideration.
Sixth Form - requests for term time leave
Students wishing to take time off during the school term for anything other than a school trip or medical appointment should complete a Sixth Form leave of absence request form (which you can download below) and return it to the Sixth Form Office at least five clear working days prior to the requested leave. Please note that we are unable to authorise time off for family holidays.
Medical appointments
Years 7-11
We encourage parents and carers to make all medical appointments outside of school hours. If this cannot be avoided, students should attend school prior to or immediately after the appointment. Key stage teams should be informed of the medical appointment prior to the date. Medical appointments are counted as absences and it will affect the student's overall attendance.
Sixth Form
If you have a medical appointment that has been made in advance then you must inform the Sixth Form Office before the appointment providing an appointment card where possible. For appointments made at short notice i.e. on the day, please inform the Sixth Form Office as soon as possible.
Religious observance
Silverdale School recognises and celebrates many different religions. Schools must treat absence as authorised when it is due to religious observance. The day must be exclusively set apart for religious observance by the religious body to which the parents belong. Where necessary, schools should seek advice from the parents’ religious body about whether it has set the day apart for religious observance.
Parents and carers please note that although the absences are authorised, it is still counted as an absence on the student’s attendance certificate. Within school, we make sure students are not unfairly affected by this absence regarding rewards for 100% attendance. However, the school’s attendance register is a legal document, and therefore the absence must be recorded.
Parents and carers must inform the school prior to the religious observance days if the child will be absent from school. If we have not been informed prior to the date we will follow our absence procedures to identify the reason for the child’s absence from school.
Participating in a supervised sporting activity
We recognise that students at Silverdale School have exceptional skills and talent. We want to support our young people to participate fully in training for sporting activities. Any requests regarding student participation in sporting events during the school day must be requested in writing to the headteacher. This includes any adjustments to the time of the school day for example, students leaving school early to participate in sporting activities.
Education Welfare Service
Regular attendance is an essential requirement for educational results and where attendance difficulties exist or a student’s attendance falls below 85%, Education Welfare Service (EWS) will support staff and parents in developing and implementing strategies to address or improve school attendance. Silverdale School works in partnership with Multi Agency Support Team (MAST) regarding persistent absenteeism.
