Going to school regularly is important for your child’s future. Parents are responsible for making sure their children receive full-time education. Talking to your child and their teachers could help solve any problems if your child does not want to go to school.

Regular school attendance

Good attendance shows secondary schools and/or future potential employers that your child is reliable.

Russells Hall Primary School records details of all children’s attendance and absence from school. We do so at the beginning of morning and afternoon sessions. If your child is absent, you must inform the school immediately.

The school will record the absence and the Local Authority will receive this information for each child. The Department of Education also receives annual attendance data for the school.

Your responsibilities as a parent

By law, all children of compulsory school age must receive a suitable full-time education. For most parents, this means registering their child at a school. Although some parents choose to make other arrangements to provide a suitable, full-time education.

Once your child is registered at a Russells Hall Primary School, the parent is legally responsible for making sure they attend on a regular basis.  If your child does not attend school on a regular basis, you could be subject to a fine or be prosecuted in court.

How to prevent your child from missing school

You can help prevent your child missing school by:

• making sure they understand the importance of good attendance and punctuality.

• taking an interest in their education, ask about schoolwork and encourage them to get involved in school activities.

• discussing any problems they may have at school and letting their teacher or principal know about anything serious.

• not letting children take time off school for minor ailments, particularly those which would not prevent you from going to work.

To avoid disrupting your child’s education, you should arrange appointments and outings:

• after school hours.

• at weekends.

• during school holidays.

• You should not expect Russells Hall Primary School to agree to your child going on holiday during term time.

Support on school attendance

A child’s school attendance can be affected if there are problems with:

• Bullying.

• Housing or care arrangements.

• Transport to and from school.

• Work and money.

If your child starts missing school, you might not know there is a problem.  If there is a problem, please approach their teacher or the school attendance team.