Welcome to Noel-Baker Academy’s Attendance page.

Our attendance policy will provide you with further information relating to our approach on attendance and can be found here.

As we all know, the highest possible attendance leads to the highest possible success in life and at Noel-Baker we are proud to be an Inclusive Attendance School. This means that our approach has been designed to meet the new government guidance with your child at the heart of what we do.

You can read more on the new government guidance here.

Noel-Baker Academy is proudly recognised as an Inclusive Attendance School. The Inclusive Attendance professional development model fundamentally guides our attendance approach. Comprising six tailored Learning Modules, this model empowers us to deepen our understanding by facilitating continuous professional learning for all staff. Within this model, the four domains of practice ensure the provision of professional learning, professional development, evidence-based practices, and exemplary leadership and management to seamlessly integrate theory into practice. We use a multi-tiered system of support (MTSS) for school attendance that involves three tiers of intervention with roles for teachers, the Academy, children, parents and external agencies. The system aligns with the Department for Education’s (DFE) “Working Together to Improve School Attendance” statutory paper 2024.

Tier 1 – Universal Approach: Establishing a baseline universal attendance approach that benefits all children.

Tier 2 – Internal individualised Strategies and Early Help Support: Tailoring strategies to individual needs and providing early help support for persistent attendance challenges.

Tier 3 – Higher Needs Strategies Support: Furnishing specialised support for children, young people, and families with complex attendance requirements, including access to external agency support when necessary.

The Importance of School Attendance at Noel-Baker Academy

School attendance is not merely a requirement but a fundamental pillar of education. It plays a pivotal role in shaping academic success, personal growth, and future prospects, making it an indispensable aspect of any educational system.  Regular attendance to school can have a significant impact on: 

• Academic Achievement: Regular attendance directly correlates with academic success. Children who attend school consistently are more likely to keep up with the curriculum, perform better in exams, and improve their life outcomes.
• Knowledge Acquisition: School is where children acquire knowledge and skills that are crucial for their personal and professional growth. Missing days means missing out on valuable learning opportunities.
• Social Development: School provides a vital social environment for children and adolescents to interact with peers, develop friendships, and learn essential social skills. Consistent attendance ensures children remain connected to their peer group.
• Building Routine: School attendance establishes a structured routine in children’s lives, teaching them time management and responsibility, which are valuable life skills.
• Teacher Interaction: Regular attendance allows for meaningful teacher-child interactions. Teachers can provide personalised support, address questions, and assess individual progress more effectively when children attend regularly.
• Preventing Knowledge Gaps: Frequent absences can lead to significant knowledge gaps, making it challenging for children to catch up with missed lessons, potentially resulting in long-term academic struggles.
• School Engagement: Children who attend school regularly are more likely to engage in extracurricular activities, sports, and other enriching experiences that contribute to their overall development.
• Legal and Parental Responsibility: Parents or guardians are legally responsible for ensuring their child’s regular school attendance. Failing to do so can lead to legal consequences.
• Community Well-being: High levels of school attendance contribute to the overall well-being of communities.

Please see below how we award our students for their Amazing Attendance Achievements.

Arrival to the Academy

The school day at Noel-Baker Academy starts at 8:30am. Pupils must arrive on site by 8:25am every day to ensure they can cross the site and be on time. The register for the first session will be taken at 8:30am and will be kept open until 9:00am. The register for the second session will be taken at 12:10pm and will be kept open until 12:30pm.

Lateness and Punctuality

Punctuality is the cornerstone of success, showing dedication and determination to succeed – not only today, but also later in life. We will always seek to work with families and pupils to identify and mitigate ongoing issues which cause lateness, supporting pupils to arrive on time and be successful in school. As part of this process, there needs to be a sanction for pupils who are persistently late.

A pupil who arrives late to school:

• Before the register has closed, will be marked as late, using the appropriate code ‘L’;
• Students must be punctual to school. They are expected to cross the gate by the Sports Block (SVB) at 8:25am where daily routines of uniform and equipment will be checked after entering the school building during NBA Reads by their form teacher;
• If a student arrives late to school, they must arrive at the Main School Reception where they will be greeted by the Education Welfare Officer or Attendance Assistant and spoken to about their lateness. Parents and carers will be informed by text every day a student is late. The student will be signed in and sent to their lesson;
• As a result of being late to school, the attendance team will try and identify any barriers which are stopping the student from arriving to school on time;
• If a student is late without good reason, they will be issued a detention and brought down to the canteen by their form teacher where the detention will take place;
• Failure to attend the detention, will result in a full further detention the following day. Failure to attend this will lead to further sanctions such as a day in reset;
• After the register has closed, no longer than 30 minutes after the start of the session, a pupil will be marked as absent, using the appropriate code ‘U’ which signifies that the pupil arrived after the official closing of the register and denotes an unauthorised absence. Persistent lateness may result in a referral to the Education Welfare Service and a Fixed Penalty Notice may be issued.

A pupil who arrives late to lesson:

• Any student who arrives more than 3 minutes after the first student will be classed as late; 
• If a staff member needs to speak with a student, they will issue them with a pink slip and the child will not be punished for being late in this case;
• If a student is late during the day without a valid reason (a pink slip), they will be brought to the detention by their form tutor.

Absence Procedure at Noel-Baker Academy

You must notify the academy of the reason for the absence on the first day of an unplanned absence by 8:15am or as soon as practically possible by calling the Academy on 01332 572026, using the email address of [email protected] or using the SchoolComms app. This should be followed up with evidence (where appropriate) in writing. We will mark absence due to illness as authorised unless Noel-Baker Academy has a genuine concern about the authenticity of the illness or absence levels are of a concern. If the authenticity of the illness is in doubt, we may ask the pupil’s parent/carer to provide medical evidence, such as, prescription, appointment card or other appropriate form of evidence. We will not ask for medical evidence unnecessarily. If the academy is not satisfied about the authenticity of the illness, the absence will be recorded as unauthorised and parents/carers will be notified of this in advance.

We know that the main reason your child may be absent from school is due to illness. Please remember that early morning aches and pains often pass, so don’t keep your child at home ‘just in case’, when they could be learning. We will monitor your child’s attendance closely and are able to support your child at school if they are feeling unwell.

Please contact the school each subsequent day of absence, unless a definite date of return is known.  If you do not contact us within 24 hours of an absence, this will be marked as unauthorised. Please note that if your child has been sick, they do not need to remain at home for the following 48 hours- they can return earlier!

Medical evidence

If your child has been absent for 3 days or more with either illness or unauthorised absence over a 6-week rolling period, we will require some form of medical evidence stating the health reasons for the absence. This can also be emailed to [email protected] or, upon your child’s return to school, given to the attendance office as above.

Medical/ dental appointments

Medical/ dental appointments must be made outside of the normal school day. Where this is truly unavoidable, the medical appointment card (or letter from parent/carer) should be given to the attendance office.

Holidays in Term Time

We do not authorise any absences for holidays during school time. The Government guidelines are very clear and only allow the Head teacher to grant leave of absence for exceptional circumstances.  You do not have a legal right to take your child out of school for a holiday during term time. Further information is explained in our attendance policy.

All unauthorised absences

If your child is absent from school without authorisation from us, we will have to investigate further with the assistance of the Education Welfare Service. Where it is shown that unauthorised leave of absence or holiday has been taken, you may be subject to a penalty notice per parent/ carer per child in the first instance. Please note that we can only alter an unauthorised code for 5 days after it has happened, otherwise it will stay as unauthorised.

Go4Schools to check attendance

If there are any unauthorised absences still on your child’s record, you are able to log onto Go4Schools to see the dates. To enable us to authorise any absences, we will require written confirmation explaining the reason for the absence. This can be emailed to [email protected] or, upon your child’s return to school, given to the team in the attendance office on A Floor Green/ Yellow.

Finally, good habits are developed from an early age. 
It is vital that punctuality and attendance is the norm, rather than the exception.
We will always support you to encourage and demonstrate the importance of efficient time-keeping for your child, which will lead them to a bright future!