Attendance

At Manor High School, regular school attendance is essential for students to achieve their full potential. A safe and structured environment helps them develop the confidence, skills, and resilience they need for future success. If students are not in school, they will not develop either academically or pastorally. We believe that regular school attendance is the key to enabling students to maximise the educational opportunities available to them and become emotionally resilient, confident and competent adults who are able to make a positive contribution to their community

Manor High School believes that excellent attendance and punctuality are essential to enabling students to achieve their full potential and embody our vision of Excellent People, Excellent Results. We recognise that barriers to attendance are complex and we commit to fostering a safe, supportive environment and strong partnerships with students and parents in order to overcome these barriers.

We take a whole-school approach to securing good attendance, recognising the impact of curriculum, behaviour standards, SEND support, pastoral care, and effective use of resources (such as pupil premium) on attendance.

We are committed to:

  • Promoting and modelling high attendance and its benefits.
  • Ensuring equality and fairness for all.
  • Making the attendance policy clear and accessible to staff, students, and parents.
  • Intervening early and working with other agencies to ensure student welfare.
  • Building strong relationships with families to overcome barriers.
  • Collaborating with other schools and community partners.
  • Ensuring parents meet their legal responsibility under section 7 of the Education Act 1996 to ensure their child receives full-time education suitable to their age and ability.
  • Regularly monitoring and analysing attendance data to identify students or cohorts needing additional support.

The school’s attendance officers are the Assistant Pastoral Leaders, Standards and Progress Leaders and Mr J Croucher (Senior Leader). They can be contacted via admin@manorhighschool.uk. Staff and parents should contact them with any attendance queries or concerns.

Oak Trust Attendance Policy [Pupils]

School Day

  • School starts at: 8:40 am
  • School finishes at: 3:05 pm
  • Registration closes 20 minutes after the start of each session (i.e., by 9:00 am for morning registration).

Late Arrivals

  • Minutes late are recorded from 8:40 am.
  • Persistent lateness is monitored and recorded.
  • Arrivals after 9:00 am are recorded as ‘U’ (unauthorised absence) for the session.
  • Parents must notify the school in advance of any medical appointments to avoid unauthorised marks.
  • Continued lateness will result in a letter home and a meeting with a senior leader to discuss an action plan.

Absence Reporting

  • Parents/carers must contact the school by 8:45 am on the first day of absence via telephone, email, or the Arbor app.
  • If no contact is received by 9:00 am, the school will contact parents/carers to request the reason for absence.
  • If contact cannot be made, alternative emergency contacts will be used.
  • If no explanation is provided, a home visit may be conducted by pastoral staff.
  • Attendance codes will be updated within 5 working days once the reason is known.

Authorised Absences

  • Requests for leave must be made in advance by submitting a Leave of Absence Request form to be addressed to the Headteacher and emailed to admin@manorhigh.leics.sch.uk
  • Only exceptional circumstances will be authorised.
  • Medical appointments should be arranged outside school hours where possible; proof of appointment may be requested.

Unauthorised Absences

  • Unauthorised absences are monitored and recorded.
  • Letters of concern will be sent to parents/carers.
  • Meetings with senior leaders will be arranged to discuss improvements.
  • Persistent unauthorised absence may lead to referral to the Local Authority and possible legal action including Fixed Penalty Notices.

Late collection

  • If students are not able to be collected promptly at the end of the school day or make their way home, they can be supervised in our designated area which is the study centre.
  • The study centre close at 5pm, therefore students must be collected before this time.
  • A record of any students who are collected late is maintained.
  • Persistent late collection will result in a meeting with senior leaders.

Home Visits

  • Home visits may be conducted when a student has missed 5 consecutive days or when there is absence without explanation or if there are welfare concerns.

Medical Appointments

  • We recognise that hospital and doctor appointments during school hours may be unavoidable.
  • Parents must notify the school office in advance of appointments.
  • Proof of appointment may be requested for authorisation.

Illness Guidance

  • Minor coughs or colds do not usually require absence.
  • Parents must inform the school on the first day of illness-related absence.

Escalation Procedure

    Attendance %     Example of School Actions
    96-100%     Excellent attendance; first day absence follow-up; whole school promotion and monitoring of attendance
    90-95%     School will work with parents and students to identify reasons for absence, tutor intervention / attendance interventions used
    85-90%     School will work closely with families, Stage 1 letter sent home, attendance monitoring by Assistant Pastoral Leaders, engagement with local authority
    50- 85%     School will work closely with families, Stage 2 letter sent home, attendance monitoring by Standards and Progress Leaders pastoral referral, engagement with local authority, potential for social care involvement
    <50%     School will work closely with families, Stage 3 letter sent home, attendance monitoring by Senior Standards and Progress Leader, engagement with local authority and inclusion services, potential for social care involvement

Roles and Responsibilities

  • Senior Leader responsible for attendance: Mr J Croucher
  • Attendance Officers: Assistant Progress Leaders and Standards and Progress Leaders for each year group
  • All staff promote attendance and punctuality and follow up on concerns.
  • Staff receive ongoing training on attendance legislation, procedures, and support strategies.

Communication and Promotion

  • Attendance expectations and procedures are communicated via induction, newsletters, assemblies, and the school website.
  • Parents receive regular updates on attendance with clear explanations of impact.
  • Attendance is celebrated through awards and recognition.

Data and Compliance

  • Attendance is recorded accurately in compliance with DfE regulations.
  • Data is shared with DfE and local authorities as required.
  • The school complies with the Equality Act 2010 and considers individual needs fairly.

Attendance Impact Chart