Monday 8 April 2019

Unexplained Absences

     

Image result for school attendance cartoon


                                     
I am writing to make you aware of the procedure for children who have unexplained absences from school.

There have been public cases in the past which you may have heard of where schools have not chased up the reasons as to why children are off of school. It has then transpired that there have been tragic circumstances around these absences, e.g. illness of a parent and the child hasn’t been able to seek help.
We will do everything we can to prevent such situations occurring as I am sure you would agree that your child’s safety is paramount to us all.

Therefore, please call the office on 01708343616 or email the Attendance Officer jkinchella@mead.havering.sch.uk by 09:15 to report their absence.

If we have not heard from you by 09:15 then our Attendance Officer will start to call all the contact numbers that you have provided in order to gain an explanation for the absence. If we still have not been able to ascertain where your child is then we will carry out a home visit. However if still haven’t been able to get a response then we will report it to the police as your child will then be classed a ‘missing child’.

This procedure is to ensure that we know where your child is and that you are all safe. This can be avoided if you let us know in good time why your child is absent from school. If you would like to talk to me further about this then I am happy for you to make an appointment to see me.