Attendance
How to contact the college about attendance
If your child is absent from College, please report the absence using the Studybugs app or website https://studybugs.com/ before 8:30am.
We have an automatic communication system in operation that will contact you directly if your child is marked absent at registration and we have not heard from a parent/carer. This is to ensure that the reason for absence is known as soon as possible and alert you if your child is not in College when they should be. You must explain any absence, for each day of absence, otherwise this will be recorded as unauthorised.
Students arriving after registration
If a student is late to College without a reasonable explanation and arrives after registration by 8.30am (students register between 8.25am - 8.30am on the MUGA) they will be marked as late and an after school sanction will be issued and put in place.
If a student is consistently late, then further sanctions will be applied as deemed appropriate by a senior member of staff. If a student arrives after registration closes, this will be recorded as an unauthorised absence. This is to comply with legal requirements.
Medical appointments
If your child is absent due to a medical appointment, then please provide evidence of the appointment. This can be an appointment card, letter or if you have an email confirmation reported via Studybugs.
Why does good attendance make a difference?
At Christ's College we consider attendance to be central to each students success and academic achievement; the higher the level of attendance, the better the chance of success. The expectation is that every student attends every day they possibly can. Good attendance promotes lifelong skills and is the first thing prospective employers and colleges ask about.
Research shows that students who miss a substantial amount of school fall behind their peers, and struggle to catch up, so although it may seem that missing a few days of college may not seem significant, it does in fact have a direct impact on their learning. Most of the work they miss may never be made up, which can lead to big gaps in their learning.
Students who miss between 10%- 20% of college (or 19 to 38 days per year) have only a 35% chance of achieving five or more good GCSEs. Conversely, students with attendance of 90% or above have a strong chance of achieving five 9 - 5 GCSE grades.
Poor attendance can affect a student’s ability to make and keep friendships; a vital part of growing up. It is difficult for students who miss school to form good social relationships.
Did you know?
98% attendance = less than 4 days absent from school
96% attendance = 7 ½ days absent from school
90% attendance = 4 weeks absent from school
85% attendance = 5 ½ weeks absent from school
80% attendance = 7 ½ weeks absent from school
Supporting good attendance
The College will monitor each student's attendance and contact you if there is a concern.
If attendance is unsatisfactory, the Local Authority may issue each parent a fine of £80, rising to £160 if you do not pay within 21 days. Each parent will only get up to 2 fines for the same child in a 3-year period. If you get a second fine in 3 years it will be £160. If you do not pay the fine in 28 days you may be taken to court for keeping your child out of school. If your child is off school 3 or more times within the 3 years you will not be fined but may be taken to court.