Attendance is important

At Ledbury Primary School, we place great importance on excellent attendance and we are committed to supporting our children and families to ensure this is achieved. We are dedicated to  working with families to understand any challenges that may affect attendance and to work together to provide tailored support. 

Regular attendance plays a vital role in helping your child make the most of their education and build strong foundations for the future. Children who attend school consistently are more likely to keep up with their learning, feel confident in the classroom, and achieve their full potential.

The Department for Education highlights the clear link between attendance and achievement. That’s why we make attendance a key priority each day—ensuring every child has the opportunity to learn, grow, and succeed.

School Timings

At Ledbury Primary School we open the gates at 8.40am and close them promptly at 8.50am. If you arrive after the gate has closed, please bring your child to the front office where you will be asked to complete a form. Pupils arriving between 8.50 and 9.20 will be marked as late (L). If they arrive after 9.20, this will be recorded as an unauthorised absence (o).

School finishes at 3.15 for all year groups.

The diagram below shows how the number of minutes late can affect the number of hours lost in learning.  Simply being 5 minutes late every day of the academic year means 15 hours are lost.  Every minute in school is utilised, and this is from the very moment the children enter the school building.

What if my child is unwell?

We fully understand that there are times when children feel unwell and are not able to attend school. Sometimes it can be difficult to decide whether or not to keep your child off school when they're unwell. The following link can help parents and carers make these decisions. Is my child too ill for school?

There are government guidelines for schools about managing certain infections. These specify clearly when children should be kept at home and when they should be at school. If your child is well enough to go to school but has an infection that could be passed on, such as a coldsore or headlice, please let the office know. Health protection in children and young people at educational settings - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

Some common examples are below:

Coughs and colds - It's fine to send your child to school with a minor cough or common cold.

High temperature - If your child has a high temperature, keep them off school until it resolves.

Chickenpox - If your child has chickenpox, keep them off school until all the spots have crusted over. This is usually about 5 days after the spots first appeared.

Hand, foot and mouth disease - If your child has hand, foot and mouth disease but seems well enough to go to school, there's no need to keep them off.

Often when we look at attendance, we look at percentages. Anything below 95% begins to cause concern due to the number of hours of missed learning. The infographic breaks down the percentages of attendance and how many days/hours are lost in just one academic year. 

Holidays

We will not authorise holidays taken in term time. We are clear on this from the moment your child is added onto our roll. If you wish to make a request for term time absence for your child, please complete an Absence Request Form and return via email to Kate Mason at kmason@ledbury.hereford.sch.uk.  

Once the request has been considered, you will receive a letter to inform you whether the request has been authorised or not. Please include as much detail as possible as to why the term time absence is an exceptional circumstance, along with ensuring the request is submitted at least 6 weeks before the requested time.