• At Wells Next the Sea Primary and Nursery school we recognise the strong links between good attendance and good academic progress. We see good attendance as being at school for 96% of the time.
• Each week the attendance of every class is displayed on their classroom door and is celebrated in Friday’s assembly. Our school mascot, Attendance Pig, stays with the attendance winners each week, bringing the winning class a treat if they have achieved 100% attendance.
• Children receive certificates to celebrate attendance of 100% each term and their names are read out in assembly.
• Holidays are not authorised by the school unless it is deemed to be in exceptional circumstances. Parents of families taking unauthorised holidays will be fined by Norfolk County Council if it lowers their child’s attendance to below the acceptable level.
• All parents are informed of their children’s attendance percentage at parents’ evenings and in the end of year reports. If your child’s attendance is low and of concern, you will be contacted by school on an individual basis and may be asked to supply some written evidence.
   

What if your child’s attendance is not good?

• Anything above 96% attendance is deemed as good and this is the national target for all pupils. The DFE sets the minimum expected attendance for children at 90% for the year. This allows 9.5 days of absence for illness or medical appointments across the school year. Attendance of children who drop below this amount will be questioned. Low attendance which is not backed up by medical evidence supplied by a medical practitioner or evidence of another exceptional circumstance will lead to a process called the 'Support First Approach'.

• The Support First approach replaces the Fast Track process in Norfolk and highlights the need for all possible supportive practices to be exhausted prior to the consideration of any legal proceedings.

  This approach reduces the need for legal enforcement by taking a supportive approach to tackling the barriers to attendance, and intervening early before absence becomes entrenched. 

• If the support first approach does not work a 'Notice to Improve, is a final opportunity for a parent to engage in support and improve attendance before a referral for legal intervention is made to the Local Authority Attendance Team. If the national threshold (10 sessions of unauthorised absence within 10 school weeks) has been met but offers of support have not been engaged with by the parent or is not supporting an improvement in the pupil's attendance then a Notice to Improve should be issued to give parents a final chance to engage in support.