“When a child attends school on a regular basis, they take an important step towards reaching their full potential, and are given the greatest opportunity to learn new things and develop their skills.”
Table of how we monitor attendance at school
Lateness Adds Up!
Being late by 15 minutes every day, will add up to TWO WEEKS of school being missed each year.
Education Welfare Officer (EWO)
Good attendance is intrinsic to achieving the best outcomes possible for individual learners. We have an Educational Welfare Officer (EWO) whose role is to provide help and support to families where regular school attendance is an issue. The EWO is supported by the school office staff who make ‘first day response’ calls/texts to parents of absent pupils.
Penalty Notices
Welsh Government has instructed all Local Authorities to implement Penalty Notices under the Education (Penalty Notice) (Wales) Regulations 2013. The Local Authority believes that any absence from school, for whatever reason, is detrimental to a child’s long term life opportunities, so should be avoided if at all possible. A Penalty Notice is an alternative to prosecution with the aim of seeking to secure an improvement in the child’s attendance at school.
Neath and Port Talbot CBC flyer on penalty notices
Punctuality
Classroom doors are open for children from 8:45 a.m. until 9:00 a.m. Registers will be taken at 8:55 a.m. and they will be closed at 9:05 a.m. Any child arriving after this time is recorded as late. Any child arriving after 9:25 a.m. is recorded as an unauthorised absence for the morning session. Pupils must enter via the main entrance if they are late. If a child is persistently late, you may be called in for a meeting with the Head Teacher and the Education Welfare Officer.