Attendance

At Thomas Deacon Academy, attendance and punctuality are a critical factor in a student’s success at school. We are all working together to ensure that students achieve their maximum academic potential. Our school target is 100% attendance for all students.

It is a well-established fact that poor attendance and punctuality can have a negative effect on academic progress.

Academy Registers (Seniors only)

Students should aim to arrive at the Academy for 8.30am, ready for lessons to begin at 08.45am.

Registers open at 08.45am    

Any student arriving after 8.45am but before 9.15am will receive a Late Mark and will be coded L on the register.

Registers close at 09.15am    

Any student arriving after 9.15am will receive an Unauthorised Late Mark and will be coded U on the register; it will mean they have an unauthorised absence due to arriving after registers have closed and will affect the student’s overall attendance.

All lessons are registered electronically, and students’ lesson attendance monitored throughout the day by their Student Support Officer.

 

Reporting a Student Absence

Some students will occasionally be absent from the Academy, and we appreciate that your child may not be able to attend due to unexpected illness.

For those reasons we ask you to do the following:

• Parents / Legal Guardians / Carers only, must contact the Academy to inform your child’s Student Support Officer of their absence and reason for it.

 

• Please ensure that messages are clear and state the student’s name, tutor group, and as much detail as possible for the absence – “sick”, “ill”, “poorly”, “unwell” etc will not be accepted as a reason for absence.

 

• Calls can be made to 01733 426060, then press the option for the Year you need. For Juniors, call 01733 426054.

 

• Student absences must be reported no later than 9.15am.

 

• Contact must be made every day your child is absent.

Please be aware that although you may provide a reason for your child’s absence, it is the Academy who decides if the absence is authorised.

If you fail to call or message the Academy for your child’s absence, we will try to contact you.

Failure to contact the Academy or respond to messages for absences may result in a Home Visit being completed by the Attendance Team or our Link Police Officer.

To help, you can click on Is my child too ill for school? - NHS (www.nhs.uk) to find out if your child should be absent from school or not.

 

Punctuality / Lateness

Any student who is going to arrive late to school must have it reported to your child’s Student Support Officer in the same way as reporting a student absence.

Students who arrive late must sign in this can be done with the member of staff on “Late on the Gates” up to 9.00am. If after 9.00am students must sign in at main reception and with their Student Support Officer.

Persistent lateness will be monitored, and sanctions issued to students accordingly. Follow up contact may also be made with individual families and a fixed Penalty Notice may be issued.

 

Medical Appointments

Medical professionals should be able to accommodate appointments outside school hours. Please aim for either early morning or late afternoon appointments.

Students must return to the Academy after the appointment has taken place (unless the school day has ended by the time the appointment has finished), this will ensure that your child is able to complete most of their school day and it minimises the impact on their learning and progress.

All medical appointments must be backed up with evidence and this must be provided to the Student Support Officer prior to the appointment so they can be attached to student files and a sign out card issued if needed.

 

Leave of Absence Requests

As detailed in our Attendance Policy and in line with DfE guidance, the Principal or Acting Principal will not authorise holidays during term time and booking holidays during term time may result in a fixed Penalty Notice being issued.

Parents do not have the right to take their child out of school for holidays in term time. Should you feel that there are exceptional circumstances that require you to take your child out of school during term time, you must seek permission giving at least 4 weeks’ notice.

Application for leave of absence Click Here for information and request form. Please ensure the form is completed in full, giving as much detail as possible for exceptional circumstances and providing evidence.

• Once the Leave of Absence form is complete it must be handed with evidence to either your child’s Student Support Officer or e-mailed to Attendance@tda.education.

 

• The exceptional circumstances will be considered by the Attendance Officer and the Principal / Acting Principal as to whether the leave is authorised. However, as a matter of policy, Thomas Deacon Academy will not authorise leave of absence for holidays in term time.

 

• If the term time Leave of Absence request is refused and the student is still taken out of school, this will be recorded as an Unauthorised Absence on the student’s attendance record and a fixed Penalty Notice may be issued.

Please be aware that Under Section 8 (1) (h), (i), (iii) of the Education (Pupil Registration) (England) Regulations 2006, should your child fail to return to school by the time that registration ends on 20^th day of absence, the Academy is permitted to delete your child’s name from our register, and you will have to find a new school place.

Please Remember - Term time absence is a significant factor in a child’s under-achievement. Also, children who find English and Maths difficult often find it even harder to catch up on work missed.

 

Moving out of Peterborough / Leaving City?

If you are moving out of Peterborough, moving country, or returning to your home country, you will need to complete a Leaving City Form which can be found by Clicking Here.

Once the form has been completed in full it must be handed in straight away and before you leave Peterborough, to your child’s Student Support Officer or it can be e-mailed to Attendance@tda.education.

 

Persistent Absence (PA)

How many days off will make your child a persistent absence (PA) student
Term 1	3½ days off school from September until October half term holiday will make your child PA.
Terms 1-2	7 days off school from September until the Christmas holiday will make your child PA.
Terms 1-3	10 days of absence from September until February half term will make your child PA.
Terms 1-4	12½ days of absence from September until the Easter holidays will make your child PA.
Terms 1-5	15½ days of absence from September until May half term will make your child PA.
Terms 1-6	19 days of absence for the full academic year will make your child PA.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A student becomes a “Persistent Absentee” when they miss 10% or more of schooling within an agreed period of time for whatever reason.

Any student with an attendance percentage of less than 90% will not have any absences authorised unless medical evidence can be provided.

Please note – If a student with low attendance is sent home due to illness, then that day will be authorised, but any additional days’ absence will require medical evidence to be provided.

For guidance, the Academy considers attendance levels as follows:

Encouraging your child to attend school / My child is avoiding attending school

• Make sure your child gets enough sleep and is up in plenty of time each morning.

 

• Ensure that your child leaves home in correct, full Academy or Sports Uniform (if they have PE that day) and is properly equipped for the day.

 

• Show you value your child’s education by showing interest in the things they have done at school, ask questions about what they have learnt, share your own knowledge about the subject with them.

 

• Look on the Edulink One app for your child’s homework, progress in lessons and checkpoint reports. You can also check on your child’s daily and lesson attendance on the app.

 

• Encourage your child to attend school even on the days when they feel under the weather, refer to the NHS website for guidance if you are unsure if your child should be absent Is my child too ill for school? - NHS (www.nhs.uk)

 

• Attend your child’s Parents Evening and engage with your child’s Teachers, Form Tutor, and Pastoral Team.

 

• If you have any worries at all, please contact your child’s Form Tutor or Pastoral Team to discuss them, and so support can be put in place if needed.

 

• If your child is avoiding school, it could be for a number of reasons; difficulties with schoolwork, friendship problems, bullying or family difficulties. It is important that you work with the Academy to identify the problem so we can work together to tackle it straight away. Your child’s Pastoral Team are here to help.

 

Support and Guidance

Please see below a selection of support websites that may help you, other services are also available:

Define Fine

Peterborough Information Network | Define Fine:   Parent Peer Support for School Attendance Difficulties

Parentzone

Parent Zone | At the heart of digital family life

Childline

Childline | Childline

Citizen Advice Bureau

Citizens Advice

CHUMS

Home | CHUMS - Mental Health and Emotional Wellbeing Service

Mind

Home - Mind

Ormiston Families / YOUnited

Ormiston Families

CAMHS

Service detail | CPFT NHS Trust

 

Rewards and Awards

At Thomas Deacon Academy we thrive on rewarding our students for positive conduct and attendance.

Students who achieve 100% attendance in a seasonal term (Autumn, Spring or Summer) will receive recognition with a Gold Certificate.

Students who achieve 99-98% attendance in a seasonal term (Autumn, Spring or Summer) will receive recognition with a Silver Certificate.

Students who achieve 97-96% attendance in a seasonal term (Autumn, Spring or Summer) will receive recognition with a Bronze Certificate.

And students who achieve 100 – 96% attendance in a whole Academic Year will receive a Character Certificate and be placed into a draw to win a £20 Amazon Voucher.

Students who don’t make 97% attendance or above can be nominated by any member of Thomas Deacon Academy staff for either “Courage towards Attendance”, “Commitment to Attendance” “Confidence to Attend” Certificates; these are awarded to students who for personal reasons are unable to attend regularly but when they can attend, do so every day.

Tutor Groups who have the highest overall attendance each Term (1-6) from Years 7-13 will receive a Tutor Party! This is where the Tutor Group use their Tutor time to celebrate their success by using the time freely in their classroom and having food and drink treats delivered to enjoy.

 

Relevant Documents

• TDA Term Dates 2023-2024
• TDA Attendance Policy
• DfE – Working Together to Improve School Attendance (PDF below)
• Attendance Leaflet (PDF below)
• Thinking of taking your child out of school in term time leaflet (PDF below)
• Should I keep my child off school (PDF below)
• Punctuality (PDF below)
• Leave of Absence Letter & Form (PDF below)
• Leaving City Letter & Form (PDF below)