Attendance
It is important that children attend school regularly and on time. At Whitkirk Primary School, we believe that excellent attendance leads to excellent achievement in both curriculum progress and also social and emotional development.
We want all the children to achieve the very best they can and for this they need to be in school regularly. Irregular attendance makes it harder to keep up with work, school life and friendship. It can affect their feeling of belonging and, for some children, their ability to sustain friendships. Late arrival disrupts the education not only of the student who is late, but also of others in the class. They may miss important information on the daily routine, explanations of homework as well as subject input. Pupils who have good attendance will become successful learners who enjoy learning, make progress and achieve. They will find school routines and school work easier to cope with and by getting children into these good routines develop the skills they will need they go through the education system and onward into adult life.
We are aware that we couldn’t achieve high standards of attendance without your support, and we very much appreciate parents who promote these good habits of punctuality and attendance. Where families are struggling with this, we are always here to support and advise where we can. Please come and speak to us if you are having difficulties getting your child into school.
Opening hours:
Reception: 8:30 - 15:00 (32.5 hours)
Year 1 - Year 6: 8:45 - 15:15 (32.5 hours)
Pupil Absences
As a parent, having a child who is ill or struggling to come into school, can be a very stressful time. Therefore, please help us to help you, by reporting your child’s absence to the school office no later than 9.15am. Unfortunately, if your child is absent and we do not hear from you, we have a duty of care to call each of your emergency contacts until we are able to establish that your child is safe and the cause for their absence.
If your child is off for more than one day, please make sure that you let us know each morning that they won’t be in school again to avoid us having to call you to find out how they are.
Thank you for your support and cooperation in keeping our pupils safe.
COVID-19 Related Absences
From September 2020, the Government once again made attendance at school compulsory. However, certain restrictions remain in place for pupils and their families who may be displaying signs of, or have confirmed cases of COVID-19.
Where a pupil or a member of their household has symptoms of COVID-19, they cannot attend school until test results have been received. If a negative result is returned, the child can return to school. In cases where the test result is positive, the child must continue to self-isolate with the other members of their household for fourteen day after the onset of symptoms.
