Unauthorised absences but rang school each time

[artandcraftmum]

On my sons school report he has had several unauthorised absences. The he had chicken and pox off 4 days once and again off this Fri vomiting. I rang school before start each time and reported. How can I sort all this out?

[SleepingStandingUp]

You need to go in and speak to someone on reception. How long ago was it? Do you have the call logs? Did you speak to someone or was it a message?

[Theimpossiblegirl]

Go in and ask. They should be authorised if he was ill.

[wentmadinthecountry]

In Kent you are now supposed to provide evidence - prescription, doctor letter/appt card. I know - you would not be welcome at the surgery with a D and V bug.

[BringOnTheScience]

At my school they required a phone call on each day if absence and a written note on the day of return. No note = unauthorised.

[typoqueen]

we found the best thing to do in these cases where you obviously do not need to go to the doctors and you have no proof of illness is to phone them and ask for a phone consultation, once the doctor phones ask them for a copy of the consultation and take it into school.

[ThalassaThalassa]

Are you sure it's those days that were unauthorised? Are you ever late after registers closed? That gets marked as unauthorised if no good reason. So at my kids' school, more than ten mins late = unauthorised absence for that session.

[Naty1]

Did you ring every day for the CP?

[FrayedHem]

It's possibly just an error. Though my DC school has a policy that if attendance is under 95% all subsequent illness absences have to have proof you have attended the GP, otherwise they will mark it as unauthorised. So even if it is something you wouldn't attend the GP for, like D&V, it will be unauthorised.

[laptopdisaster]

Please all of you stop wasting your GPs time. If your child doesn't need to see a Dr it is totally inappropriate to ring to get evidence for school.

[FrayedHem]

@laptopdisaster Only one poster has said they do contact the GP to get evidence. A bit of stretch to say we are all wasting our GPs time.

[Labradoodliedoodoo]

Email the school. It’s obviously a mistake

[gamerchick]

Please all of you stop wasting your GPs time. If your child doesn't need to see a Dr it is totally inappropriate to ring to get evidence for school

Why don't you tell the school that or rather the stroppy attendance officers they employ?

[elephantfan]

Completely agree about wasting the GP's time, but someone needs to educate the schools. Parents are sensible, schools are unreasonable.

[laptopdisaster]

Completely agree about wasting the GP's time, but someone needs to educate the schools.

that's up to the parents to do
my daughter's school recently tried to introduce a ridiculous policy for kids with asthma - so I objected in writing, and it was changed

Parents need to have the guts to say to the school - no, the NHS is in crisis and I'm not wasting my GPs time because my child has a cold.

[laptopdisaster]

@laptopdisaster Only one poster has said they do contact the GP to get evidence. A bit of stretch to say we are all wasting our GPs time.

I think two suggested it, but fair comment!

I'll rephrase it so "some of you....." !

[SassitudeandSparkle]

Agree with PP that they need a letter on the child's return as well - did you send a letter in? It could be that unfortunately!

[Fatted]

Did you send a note each time?

DS school insist on a note/letter sighed by parents explaining the absence as well as a phone call.

[BackforGood]

I agree with laptopdisaster.
Tell the school clearly, tht you are not wasting the NHS's resources and it is up to them how they record it.
You have done the right thing in telling them what the issue is. Obviously there is no need to phone in and annoy the Receptionist every day - clearly if they are off for D&V is has to be 48hours anyway. Same is going to be the case with chickenpox.
I say that as a teacher. If I get a message to say a child has chickenpox on the Wed, and they aren't in on the Thurs., they are still marked out with the chickenpox. Common sense really.
Ultimately though, it doesn't make one iota of difference to you / your child if the absence is authorised or unauthorised. If the school want to play funny buggers with you, then it is the school's %s that look low. You know your child was ill, and that you phoned in. There is no need to be concerned from your dc's pov.

[orthepotofbasil]

I work in a school office. I have never come across a school that would routinely ask parents for a doctor's evidence for a one day absence. Nor a local authority that would advise this (Kent certainly doesn't, contrary to what a poster said upthread). Generally a school would only do this for absence over a certain period (usu at least 3 consecutive days, and usu not in the case of something like chickenpox), or in the case of a family with very poor attendance where it is strongly suspected that the parents routinely lie about reasons for absence. And as for the whole 'parents are sensible, schools are unreasonable' thing - I'm sorry, that's just not true. Do you really think that all parents tell the truth about their children's absence all the time? If they do, then the number of children who so unfortunately contract their tenth D&V bug of the year on the last 48 hours of term, or who only come down with a 24 hour 'high fever' on a Monday, is extraordinary! I'm not saying you fall into this category OP, and it may be that your school has made a mistake on this occasion - but please don't paint all parents as the totally innocent party when it comes to attendance. And how about the other suggestion upthread - could the unauthorised absences be for lateness rather than absence??