Attendance and Absence
What time does school start ?
Children should arrive at school from 8.45am and should be in their classroom by 8.50am. Please do not come in to school before 8.45am, unless you have made an appointment, as our teachers need this time to prepare for the school day.
Our school day runs from 8.45am to 3.15pm. We offer a breakfast club which runs during term time Monday to Friday starting at 8.00am and closing at 8.45am. Children in breakfast club then join their registeration group at 8.45am. After school club runs during term time, Monday to Thursday, starting at 3.15pm and closing at 6pm. Both clubs incur a charge. Please see the Breakfast and After School Club Policy located here for full details: Curridge Primary School - Policies and Procedures (secure-dbprimary.com)
What if my child is late?
Late arrivals are disruptive for the class and your child's learning. If you do arrive after 9am, please report to the School Office. Class registers are ‘closed’ at 9.10am and arrivals after this time will be marked as Unauthorised Absence (see below).
What if my child is ill?
If your child is too ill to come to school, is being sick, has a stomach upset or unexplained rash, please do not bring your child into school. Please telephone the School Office (using Option 1) on the first day of absence to ensure the absence is authorised. If we do not receive an explanation of your child's absence, you will be called by the School Office to ensure that your child is safe and accounted for. If your child is ill on consecutive days, you do not need to telephone us again. However, if an illness continues into the following week please report the absence again on Monday morning
When are absences ‘authorised’ or ‘unauthorised’?
Absences can only be authorised by the school. An absence is authorised if your child is absent through illness or a medical appointment and you have informed us. Under some circumstances, leave of absence from the curriculum may be authorised by the Headteacher (see below). Some examples of unauthorised absences are: being kept at home to make up for lost sleep; family outings on birthdays; shopping trips; car breakdown.
Can I take my child out of school for a holiday in term time?
There is no ‘entitlement’ to be absent from the curriculum during term time and the DfE recommends that holidays should not be taken in term time. The school will only grant ‘authorised’ absence under exceptional circumstances.
How do I request Leave of Absence from the curriculum?
You may request a Leave of Absence form from our Headteacher who will discuss the proposed absence with you. The form must be completed and returned to school before any absence so that our Headteacher may consider it for authorisation. Absence will not be authorised retrospectively. If the Headteacher’s approval is not given and the holiday is still taken, the absence will be recorded as unauthorised and will appear on your child’s attendance record. The Local Authority has the power to impose fixed penalty fines for unauthorised absence from school.
The school's registers are checked on a regular basis by the Educational Welfare Officer, and s/he may contact parents independently to try to resolve frequent or unexplained absences or persistent late arrival.
Click here to see the West Berkshire Council information about school attendance.