Attendance and Punctuality
The school gates on Marinefield Road open at 8.40am and close at 8.50am.
Children are expected to arrive at school between 8.40am and 8.50am. All children need to be in their classrooms and ready to learn by 8.50am.
Children arriving after 8.50am are considered late.
Children who arrive after 9.20am are recorded in our register as an unauthorised absence for the morning session.
Attendance (Absences)
Good attendance is linked to a child's achievement at school. Children must only be absent from school if they are ill. If your child is going to be absent, please contact the school before 8.30am and advise the reason for absence.
There are 3 options for sending the school an absence message:
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send a message through the school app ‘Arbor’;
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email admin@langfordprimary.org.uk; or
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telephone the office on 020 7736 4045.
Appointments with doctors, dentists or at a hospital should be made outside of school hours or in the holidays. Where this is not possible, the details of the appointment including any letters must be brought into the School Office or emailed to admin@langfordprimary.org.uk the day before, or earlier if possible, so that the register can be marked accordingly.
If parents and carers do not provide a reason for the absence it remains unauthorised until a reason is provided. If a pupil’s Attendance falls below 95%, Attendance Awareness phone call from Attendance & Family Liaison Officer, support offered, and medical evidence requested. Senior Leadership made aware at weekly Attendance Meetings and noted on pupil’s file. No improvement to Attendance within 2 weeks, parent/carer invited to attend an attendance panel meeting to discuss poor attendance and attendance plan is created. This meeting will include the attendance of at least 1 senior leader.
A continuous lack of improvement to Attendance will result in a referral to Attendance Team within Local Authority who may issue a Penalty Notice which could also result in court proceedings. The persistent absence threshold is 10%. If a pupil's individual overall absence rate is greater than or equal to 10%, the pupil will be classified as a persistent absentee.
Punctuality (Lateness)
It is important that your child has the right start to their day. Children who arrive late miss learning time and start the day with an unsettled routine. Morning Learning is ready for children to complete from 8.40am and is marked as a whole class shortly after 8.50am.
Please ensure that your child is in school on time, arriving between 8.40am and 8.50am. Children who arrive at the School Office after 8.50am will be given a late slip and parents will need to provide a reason for lateness which is recorded, as well as the number of minutes late.Children who arrive after 9.20am are recorded in our register as an unauthorised absence for the morning session.
If a pupil is late twice within a week Punctuality Awareness phone call from Attendance & Family Liaison Officer, support offered, and medical evidence requested. Senior Leadership made aware at weekly Punctuality Meetings. No improvement: Parent/carer invited to attend a punctuality panel meeting to discuss poor punctuality and punctuality plan is created. A senior leader will be present. Continuous lack of improvement to Punctuality will result in a referral to Local Authority.
Religious Observations
The school acknowledge and welcome the multi-faith nature of our community and recognise that some families’ important religious festivals may fall outside school holidays. Children can be absent on a day exclusively set aside for religious observance by the religious body to which the family belongs.
Exceptional Leave
If your child is unable to attend school due to an exceptional or unforeseen circumstances, please request an 'application for student leave of absence' in advance of the requested day/s of absence from the School Office. Please provide as much information as possible regarding the leave of absence. Once completed please return the form to the office or via email to admin@langfordprimary.org.uk. You will be notified of the outcome of your request in person or by email.
Please be aware that a family holiday during term time is not an exceptional circumstance.