St Brigid's School Procedures

Attendance Procedures

Revised - February 2011 (changes to Ministry of Education coding)

PURPOSE:
Non-attendance at school has been identified as a major barrier to learning and a significant indication of at risk students. It is the right of all students to attend school and the responsibility of parents/caregivers to ensure attendance of all children up to the age of 16.

RECORD ATTENDANCE:

Student attendance for every morning and afternoon session will be recorded in Assembly by class teachers or office staff.
Relieving teachers and regular teachers without access to Assembly will record student attendance and absences, on a pre-printed class list, which they will send to the school office by a runner. The office staff will enter the details into Assembly.
The morning session attendance will be recorded between 8.55 - 9.10am.
The afternoon session attendance will be recorded between 1.30 - 1.45pm.
Attendance and absence shall be recorded with the following codes:

P	Present	Student is in his/her regular class (this includes supervised study)
?	not in class	This is the initial entry for a student not in class and the reason is unknown. It will be edited as relevant information becomes available about the reason for the non attendance.
M	Student is absent due to short term illness/ medical reasons (Justified)	Student is at home or in hospital because of illness or other medical reason. A medical certificate is required for prolonged illness ie 4 days or more
L	Student late for class	School office will determine when this entry is made. More than 5 minutes late (after 9.00am).
D	Doctor/Dentist appointment (Present)	Under existing legislation this type of absence is deemed to be *present* when calculating ½ day summaries, provided there is documentation verifying it.
E	Student is absent with an explained, but unjustified reason (Unjustified)	The explanation for the absence is accepted by the school as the reason for the absence, but the reason does not fit within the school’s procedures as a justifiable reason to take the student off school. eg “Molly had to stay home to look after her younger brother” or “we are going for a 2 week family holiday.” (A parent’s note does not provide justification)
F	Attending offsite course / class	eg Yr 7 & 8 Technology at Newlands Intermediate
N	School activity	One to one/group activity (on site)
V	Exams (on site)	eg ICAS exams

J	Justified absence: within school procedures	Unplanned absences such as a bus breakdown, accident, extreme weather conditions etc Planned non attendance such as national/local representation in a sporting or cultural event in NZ or overseas. Approved absence (including overseas) can also include bereavement, wedding, visiting an ill relative, exceptional family circumstances
Q	Off-site school activity, eg trip/camp	Student is on school-based (off-site) activity school camp school trip (sporting, cultural or academic)
O	Justified overseas *(Parents whose jobs require them to travel)*	A student accompanying or visiting a family member who is on an overseas posting. eg military or diplomatic. (If the period of absence is longer than 15 weeks the student must be un-enrolled and re-enrolled). Other approved (justified) overseas absence is coded “J”. If the absence is unapproved, it is coded “E”.
H	Health camp / school	Not school camps (see Q below)
S	Sickbay
R	Removed from regular class	Student is at school but removed to another class or the Principal
U	Student is stood down or suspended
T	No (or no justifiable) explanation - truant (Unjustified)	This code is for absences where no written or phone explanations are received, or the explanations are like the following: it was hot so we went to the beach we went to the shops
C	Justice court proceedings

Absence Procedures

Parents can notify the school of student absences by phone or advance notification by letter or email. These absences will be recorded by the office staff on the absentee sheet with the appropriate explanation (eg John Smith (J - funeral) and then entered into Assembly.
Office staff will follow up unexplained absences through listed contact numbers and leave messages on each number called.

The Late Register

All students (except those on an approved EOTC event outside the school) who arrive at school after the register has been marked are required to go to the office to confirm they have arrived late.

Absences during school hours

Parents and caregivers are required to inform either the class teacher or the school office if their child is to be removed from school during school hours and give the reason for doing so.

ABSENTEEISM AND LATENESS

Truancy: Defined as continuous absence with no reason or notification. All cases go immediately to the Principal. The Principal will try and make contact with parents, relatives or the emergency contacts. If unable to make contact and the problem still remains a letter is then posted home. If the situation does not improve within 5 school days, a referral is then made to the Truancy Officer in which a home visit is made. The Principal will provide truancy status reports to the Board on any current or possible cases of truancy and action taken by the school staff.

Lateness: Lateness is monitored by the Principal through Assembly. If a child is constantly late over a two week period, the Principal will try to make phone contact with parents, relatives on the emergency contacts. If unable to make contact and the problem still remains, a letter will be posted home. If the situation does not improve, a report is made to the Board, and a referral may be made to the Truancy Officer in which a home visit is made.

Absenteeism: Student attendance is monitored by the Principal through Assembly on a termly basis. Any child who, in the year and term to date, has less than 90% attendance will be noted as a “cause for concern”. A summary of such cases is reported to the Board. At the end of each term, the parents of these children are notified by letter that the attendance is a “cause for concern”. If the absenteeism persists over a subsequent consecutive term, the Principal will then, on behalf of the Board, forward a further letter identifying the concern and offering the opportunity to meet to discuss ways in which attendance may be improved. The school may make a referral to the Truancy Officer or take appropriate legal action.

ATTENDANCE COMMENTS ON SCHOOL REPORT AND TRANSFER FORMS:

Attendance 90% or better - Satisfactory

Attendance below 90% - Cause for concern

Emergency Information for Parents

The school has an Emergency Plan that sets out procedures to be followed in the event of a major emergency such as earthquake, flood, major storm etc.

We recommend that parents discuss the links between their own Emergency Plan and our school plan.

In the event of a major emergency the following procedures will apply:

Pupils will be kept at school until collected by a parent, caregiver or emergency contact person authorised by parents to collect children. The Principal may make a decision to send a child with another appropriate adult.

Accurate records will be kept of pupil’s names and the person escorting them home and their contact phone number.

No pupil shall be released unless the name of the parent, caregiver or emergency contact person has been recorded as assuming responsibility for that student.

If, following an emergency, some or all school buildings are damaged to the extent that they are unstable, temporary accommodation may be provided at: St Peter & Paul’s Church Hall.

The school will keep up-to-date emergency kits and have at least three staff trained in First Aid.

If parents wish to view the School Emergency Policy and School Emergency Evacuation Plan they can ask for a copy from the office.

Procedures to Keep Students Safe from Bullying

St Brigid’s School is committed to developing a positive class and school environment for all its students that:

reflects Gospel values
establishes consistent systems for effective management of pupils within the school environment.
promotes learning programmes, classroom environments and positive management practices that focus on building respectful relationships as key elements in realising appropriate behaviour.
Read more: Procedures to Keep Students Safe from Bullying

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