Attendance

If your child is unwell enough to not attend school, please notify us before 9am by calling 01256 892061 and selecting option 1.

If you need to request absence for your child in exceptional circumstances or other leave of absence (for example, external exam attendance, family matters, or other exceptional circumstances), please email absence@testbourne.school and request an Exceptional Absence Form. You do not need to use this form to report absence due to sickness or medical appointments etc, please phone instead.

 

Attendance

The target figure for all students is a minimum of 98% attendance. Good attendance is vital for students to make progress and succeed both at school and at work later on in their lives. Please help us to support your child attending school, by working closely with us to resolve any issues affecting your child's attendance. Please contact your child's tutor or Head of Year to discuss any issues or if you require any support or guidance. There are some leaflets in this section which you may also find useful.

We monitor students’ attendance closely using electronic registration and an automatic absence calling system, which calls the parent of any child not marked present each morning if we have not been notified in advance. Please ensure that you inform us when your child is absent otherwise it will be marked as 'unauthorised'. Where possible, please make routine medical and/or dental appointments outside of school hours and if a medical appointment is necessary, please provide some supporting evidence (where feasible) when reporting the absence.

Legislation from the Department for Education makes it clear that a Headteacher may not grant any leave of absence unless there are exceptional circumstances. If you need to request a leave of absence in term time, please contact admin office by email (admin@testbourne.school) to request a link to the electronic form.

 

Information on Penalty Notices for Non-Attendance at School

Good School Attendance Guide

TCS Attendance Leaflet

This section provides links to Hampshire County Council guidance on Emotional Based School Avoidance (EBSA)

EBSA Guidance for Parents and Carers

EBSA Good Practice and Guidance

The following link is a useful guide to parents and carers if your child is unwell and you are not sure whether they should come to school. Non attendance can have a huge impact on educational outcomes so we would strongly advise you to check this information. In most cases, it is advised that students do attend school.

Can a child go to school/nursery today? :: Healthier Together (what0-18.nhs.uk)