ATTENDANCE
Please call 015394 40810 to report your child absent.
Thank you for helping us to keep your child safe.
Excellent attendance is a key factor in helping you achieve well at The Lakes School. Every year a significant number of students achieve 100% attendance, they always make very good progress and we enjoy reward them handsomely for attending school all year. We recognise that for some students maintaining 100% attendance is a challenge, particularly through illness or medical issues. We would encourage all students to keep their percentage attendance up as near to 100% as possible so that they can take maximum advantage of the excellent teaching they receive at The Lakes School.
We have 190 teaching days in the school year and taking just 10 days off due to illness or family commitments can drop your attendance down to just below 95%. Just 5 days off in the year can quickly drop your attendance down to approximately 97%. Students who make the best progress in school generally have an attendance figure that is higher than 97% and we would encourage everyone who attends The Lakes School to try and keep their attendance above this figure. It’s not only the students who achieve 100% attendance that we like to reward and, should you achieve an attendance figure of 97% or higher, we will also be rewarding you through house and whole school assemblies.
Government research from the Department of Education indicates that 16 days of absence, or 92% attendance in any one year, equals a full GCSE grade drop in attainment.
Attendance During One School Year | Days Absent in the Year | Which is Approximately Weeks Absent | Which is this many lessons missed | And Means Persistent Absence Over 5 Years |
---|---|---|---|---|
95% | 9.5 Days | 2 Weeks | 50 Lessons | 1/4 of a Year |
90% | 19 Days | 4 Weeks | 100 Lessons | 1/2 of a Year |
80% | 38 Days | 8 Weeks | 200 Lessons | 1 Year |
70% | 57 Days | 11.5 Weeks | 288 Lessons | 1 1/2 Years |
60% | 76 Days | 15 Weeks | 375 Lessons | 2 Years |
50% | 95 Days | 19 Weeks | 475 Lessons | 2 1/2 Years |
Welcome message from our Attendance Officer
Dear Parent,
Attendance
Thank you for choosing to send your child to The Lakes School. We look forward to working in partnership with you to support the development of their academic and social skills, enabling them to achieve personal success in the future. Regular and punctual school attendance is crucial in helping students achieve well at The Lakes school, allowing them to take maximum advantage of the wide range of educational opportunities – academic and enrichment – available to them. At The Lakes School we reward and celebrate good attendance: we have a school merit system and also issue awards in our end of term celebration assemblies.
I have detailed below some key information which I trust you will find useful. You can also view a table which shows the impact of a student’s absence from school. Our full Attendance Policy and Procedures document is available on our website and this can be requested from school should you need a copy. If you have any concerns or comments regarding your child’s attendance that you wish to bring to our attention, please telephone me on 015394 40810, ext. 235.
How can you support your child’s school attendance?
- Ensure that your child attends school every day, or as near to every day as possible. Also ensure they are in school by 8:40 am, to arrive at Tutor Time by 8:45 am. Your child is responsible for arriving promptly to all lessons in the school day.
- Where possible, medical and dental appointments are scheduled for outside of the school day. Where this cannot be avoided, please ensure that the amount of time your child is off school is kept to a minimum, for example, by arranging for them to be in school promptly before and after the appointment.
- In respect of holidays, please try to arrange these for within the school holidays, rather than taking your child in term time. Details in respect of applying for term time leave of absence, in addition to the request form, can be found in our Attendance Policy & Procedures document and also on our Attendance page on our website.
Notification of Absence
If your child is absent from school, due to safeguarding we will need to make sure we have heard from you as to why your child is absent. You must notify the school as soon as possible on the 1st day of absence and any subsequent days, giving a reason for the absence. This can be done by:
Telephone: 015394 40810
Email: attendance@lakes.cumbria.sch.uk
As a school we monitor students’ attendance to ensure that attendance issues are identified at an early stage and to ensure that support is put in place to address any difficulties.
Yours sincerely
Mrs P Garcia Trillo
Attendance Officer
First Day Calling
Please help us to avoid unnecessary worry by always informing us if your child is going to be absent. Thank you.
Medical Appointments
Holidays during term time
If you would like to request permission for leave of absence for your child then please download and complete the Leave of Absence Request Form below, returning it to school reception for the attention of our attendance team.