When you text/email school. Who is it that marks your child absent?

[PinkHoover]

And gives the authorised/unauthorised mark?

Is it the receptionist?

It depends if it’s primary or secondary.

In primary, the receptionist will chase absence and report back to the Head who then reports to the local authority if unauthorised.

In secondary, there is usually an attendance assistant whose role is to chase up absence and report to the local authority if unauthorised.

Schools are obliged to report this data and have no say in fining for unauthorised absence.

Its high school.

I text and looked on his app and it was immediately unauthorised even though I've sent evidence.

What was the evidence you provided OP?

My son is having a mental health crisis, he's told CAMHs that he is suicidal at an appointment last week. The Dr told me to take him home and wrote on his appointment card that he should go home, not to school. They marked it as unauthorised

Yesterday my son had a breakdown and we called the GP for an emergency appointment. He was prescribed sleeping tablets whilst we wait for CAMHs to get back to us as he is staying awake till 4am and thinking about suicide.

They marked it as unauthorised.
As well as today.

He is seriously mentally unwell right now.

I looked online and itvsays schools cannot treat mental health any different to physical and they should only mark unauthorised if they believe there is nonreal reason for the child being off.

I have sent appointment letters, prescription proof, and CAMHs are sending their report to the school once complete.

Hi OP, I am a part time teacher. Honestly don’t worry about ‘unauthorised’. Schools have to tick these boxes due to ridiculous local authority guidelines. My girls are having an extra day off in half term, and it is unauthorised. The head told me just to ignore it.

You have plenty of proof anyway. ‘Unauthorised’ is just one of those awful words that schools have to use unfortunately.

I really hope your son gets the help he needs.

Have you messaged asking them to mark as illness? I would be clear in your request and point out it should only be marked unauthorised if they have reasonable grounds to doubt your reason for absence as illness. Ask them watbthey doubt and what hasn't been sufficient to mark as ill.

Its ongoing and they are threatening me with fines and court! He has a legitimate reason to not be in so they should not be doing it regardless.

In most secondaries there is (at least one) attendance assistant who is not a teacher but deals with all the admin relating to attendance.

attendance marks can be updated after the day on the computer system.

Mental health should be marked as 'illness' not unauthorised per the DfE guidelines. Google it, there's loads of information available. IPSEA is a great website.

It depends on the school, there may be an attendance officer, or an admin person who is responsible for updating the registers. If you tell them it’s mental health crisis and ask for it to be marked as ‘Ill’ they can go back and change it.

Unlikely to be the receptionist as they will be too busy answering the phone!

Teachers can only put limited marks in the register (present or N) so it has to be an admin person that changes it to Ill, Medical etc. (which is why it’s frustrating when a parent says ‘but he told the teacher he was going to the dentist!’ as the teacher can’t add the correct mark anyway….)

But most schools have an attendance officer that you would be liaising with?

I used to have the job of marking attendance and that would have been marked as authorised in my school. But as has already been said, don’t worry about how it’s marked. Really.

I’d send an email.

Dear X,

I am both concerned and confused over the refusal to authorise the absense for DS and the resulting threat of court and fines.

As you are aware and I’ve evidence DS is currently experiencing a MH crisis and therefore is legitimately unwell.

Can you explain why this absence has been marked as unauthorised and what your plans are going forward.

thankyou

xxxxxx

Primary, it’s the office. They let the teacher (me) know why before playtime.