It is imperative that children are in school, on time, every day. We aim for our all children to have at least 97% attendance with as many children on 100% attendance as possible. We know that children who attend school every day are more likely to learn more, be happy and settled and get a good job when they are older. To give your children the best chances and opportunities, they must be in school.
Which section does your child currently sit within?
We understand that when feeling under the weather, staying at home can feel like the best form of recovery but as the NHS says, “not every illness needs to keep your child from school.”
Here are the recommendations from the Public Health Agency for common illness that often, but not always necessary, result in absences from school:
| Symptom | Recommended period to be kept away from nursery/ school |
| Diarrhoea and/ or vomiting | 48 hours from last episode of diarrhoea or vomiting |
| Conjunctivitis | None |
| Head lice | None |
| Tonsillitis | None |
| Glandular fever | None |
| Warts and Verrucae | None |
| Chickenpox | Five days from the onset of rash |
| Hand, Foot and Mouth | None |
| Impetigo | Until lesions are crusted and healed or 48 hours after commencing antibiotic treatment |
| General cold | None |
| Minor Headache | None |
| Sore throat | None |
Phone the school on 01509 820112 and select our attendance line. If no-one is available, then please leave a voicemail message with the following information:
If your child has a doctor, hospital or dentist appointment during school time, then you must bring the letter/appointment card into school for us to photocopy and put in your child’s record.
If you do not report your child’s absence, we will phone you to ask where your child is. As part of our Safeguarding policy we have to ensure all children who are not in school are safe, please help us to do this!!
A massive thank you to all parents/carers who keep the school informed on a daily basis when their child is absent. This helps us tremendously in the safeguarding of all children who attend Lantern Lane.
We have clear procedures that must be followed if you are planning to take your child out of school for any reason (including holiday).
Leave of absence will only be authorised in exceptional circumstances only. Leave of absence requests to take family holiday during term time due to lower costs or availability do not count as exceptional circumstances.
If you intend to take your child out of school for the purpose of a religious festival a leave of absence form must be completed.
Unauthorised absences may result in a Penalty Notice being issued, this will incur a fine to both parents for each child.
Failure to follow this procedure could lead to a prosecution.
Please remember that if your child has a significant number of unauthorised absences recorded this could lead to the Education Welfare Service becoming involved. The school will also liaise closely with you to help support you if this is likely.
At Lantern Lane we are trying very hard to reduce the amount of children who arrive late for school. It has shown that pupils who used to be late for school and no longer are, have improved their attainment and social achievements. Arriving late is very unsettling for your child, and also for the other children in class who have arrived on time. Please make sure they are here in plenty of time, remember our classrooms doors open at 8.40am and close promptly at 8:50am. If a child arrives late, they must be brought to our school office by an adult and signed in our our touch screen system. It is unfair to send your child into school alone when they are late as they are unable to complete this independently.
We are unable to take responsibility for children on the school premises before 8:40am. It is very important that children do not play with OPAL equipment or the trim trail before or after school as there is no supervision at these times. Thank you for your co-operation
Our attendance and punctuality policy, and other linked policies, can be found in the policies section of our website.
