At East Tāmaki School we have clear procedures for recording and monitoring attendance. We identify and follow up on any attendance concerns. We make sure students and their whānau are aware of the attendance expectations, and our staff are responsible for reminding students about these expectations. You can find more information about our attendance procedures below.
Reporting Absence
Parents are required to report absences through our app, Skool Loop, as soon as possible or by calling the school office 09 274 9246 before school starts. Parents are required to respond to the office who will follow up on any unreported absences.
We will follow up on unreported absences as follows:
If the student continues to be absent (without reason) the following day, the teacher will also send a message to try to make contact with the whānau.
If we have not heard from you on the third day, the Deputy Principal will try to make contact and then complete a referral to our school engagement worker from the school attendance service.
Attendance is closely monitored. There are four subgroups.
Regular attendance: students with over 90% attendance
Irregular absence: students with more than 80% and up to 90% attendance
Moderate absence: students with more than 70% and up to 80% attendance
Chronic absence: students 70% attendance or less
Our classroom teachers and office staff regularly monitor attendance patterns and will reach out to whānau to offer support in maintaining consistent attendance. If these patterns persist, the classroom teacher will refer the matter to the Senior Leadership Team, who will then contact whānau to explore further support options.
Lateness
It is important for students to arrive on time. Starting the day on time helps them get settled and prepared for their day of learning. When students are late, it can be harder for them to catch up on important routines that help them stay organised throughout the day. Regular lateness can build up over time and affect their learning progress and confidence. We appreciate your support in helping your child arrive on time.
Leaving School Early
It is our expectation that children will be in school for the full day whenever possible and that parents will always try to make appointments in school holidays or outside school hours. On the rare occasion that children need to be collected early, for safety reasons, students must follow the correct procedures when leaving school during the day.
Parents or guardians need to sign their child out in person at the reception, using the VISTAB system. The reason for leaving must be clear and specific. If the reason doesn’t meet our criteria for a justified absence (see below), it will be marked as E (Explained and considered unjustified).
To make the most of their time in class, students will stay in class until a parent or guardian arrives. Once on site, the student will then be called to the office.
Please also remember that only adults listed in our Student Management System are authorised to pick up your child. If someone not listed in the system will be picking up your child, please call the office at 09 2749246 to inform us.
We record student attendance using specific codes. Absences can be either justified (e.g., for medical reasons) or unjustified (e.g., for an unapproved holiday or other reasons). These are noted in our attendance register.
Bereavement and/or Exceptional Family Circumstances (Justified)
We acknowledge the valuable time required during bereavement and/or exceptional family circumstances. We greatly appreciate your communication in letting us know what challenges you and your family may be facing. Pending the information we receive, we may code absence of this type as J (justified). This is judged on a case by case basis. Should the absence require more than 5 days, from the 6th day onwards, the absence will be coded as E (Explained and considered unjustified).
Please complete an absence note on Skool Loop or phone 09 2749246.
Medical (Justified)
Student is at home, or in hospital, because of illness or other medical reasons. A medical certificate may be requested for prolonged illness. E.g. absent for more than three days
If you are very very sick, please stay home.
This information helps you decide when it is okay to send your child to school, when you should keep your child at home and when you should contact a health professional for advice.
Please complete an absence note on Skool Loop or phone 09 2749246.
(D) Appointments
If your child needs to leave school for an appointment or arrives late afterwards, we ask that they attend either the morning or afternoon roll call so the appointment can be marked as ‘M’ for medical. If they miss both, the absence may be marked as explained but unjustified rather than medical.
If possible, please provide the school with confirmation of the appointment (such as an email or phone call) to help us update your child's absence record and confirm communication with whānau.
(G) Overseas Trip/Family Trip during Term Time
As a school, we are committed to ensuring the highest attainable attendance rates and to supporting the academic progress and wellbeing of all our students. While we understand the importance of family events and the valuable experiences that travel can offer, it is our policy, based on the Ministry of Education guidelines, not to condone absence for overseas trips during school terms.
According to the Ministry guidelines, family trips during school term are not considered a valid reason for missing school. Because of this, we need to mark your child’s absence as G (Overseas Trip). This means we understand why your child was absent,
but it doesn’t meet the rules for a justified absence. If it is for a Cultural Event in New Zealand or Overseas, this is considered as J (Justified).
We encourage you to plan family holidays during school breaks to minimise disruption to your child’s education. Regular attendance is crucial for your child’s academic success and social development. If you have any questions or require further clarification regarding our attendance policy, please do not hesitate to contact the school office.
We ask that you communicate your intention to take your student out of school for an overseas trip as soon as possible. This communication needs to include the reason for the trip, the dates of the trip and needs to address both the office staff (office@easttamaki.school.nz) and the classroom teacher. You will receive a letter in response that acknowledges this communication and reiterates the school’s attendance coding position as outlined above. If we do not receive this and your child is absent for more than 20 days they will be removed from the school roll.
Note: Events such as birthdays or special outings are not considered justified absences.
Truancy
If a student is absent and the school receives no communication about this absence through advanced notice or through standard office procedure, they will be marked as T (Truant). 3 consecutive days of truancy meet the threshold to refer to our Attendance Service who may coordinate on follow up to ensure our students are attending school.
A Truancy code can be changed in retrospect on a case by case basis. However, the only way to ensure correct coding is for communication to be received in advance or on the day from whānau.
Chronic Absence
If a student misses school more than 30% of the time (or has 3 or more days of truancy in a row) and the school has tried to work with the family, we will refer the student to the Attendance Service. This service helps students and whānau improve attendance.
For more information, visit: https://www.aces.school.nz/attendance-services
Absences are not excused if the reason is not valid or is something like:
To make sure the student’s attendance record is correct, we need clear and valid reasons for any absences.
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