Just received a letter informing (threatening?) possibility of referral to educational welfare service re: attendance - AIBU?

[iscott17]

Just received a letter informing (threatening) 'possible referral to educational welfare service' - DS attendance was '94.39' - 'below school attendance target of 96+%' (Sept til now).

Part of this was due to SCHOOL sending him home for mandatory 48 hours absence when he puked in lunch room.

Have requested a meeting with headteacher - tempted to go in all guns blazing, esp when checking school attendance policy on the school website which says 'letters will be sent to parents when attendance falls below 90%'. AIBU? Any suggestions/recommendations on how to deal with this (short of ripping headteacher's head off!)

I think you should ring the Daily Mail Hun.

Why would you rip the headteacher's gead off? It isn't their fault your child's attendance is low. These letters tend to be automatically generated and the head won't have much if any say in it. The EWO will probably just look in to it, see whether or not the absences were justified, and act accordingly. If they are alll legit then what's the problem?

I would just ignore it .

I think you and quite a few others on here will find this an interesting read OP.

salfordstar.com/article.asp?id=4233

No advice OP. You've got it all under control and your approach is guaranteed to lead to a positive outcome.

FlexTime

So there was 2 days off sick. How many days were they absent in total and how many where they in school?

Log it with 101 NOW!

94 per cent is more than 48 hours off for a bug.

94% attendance is low and even in the first term it is more than 48 hours off school.

These letters are generally automated ones, if you have concerns talk to the School sensibly about it. Don’t go in all guns blazing as that reallh wont help your cause

I would think the puking incident would be put down to authorized absence. Check there hadn't been a mistake made before throwing your toys out of the pram.

Two days off at this point in the year when they've only had about 40 days possibly less if any training days would take attendance to below 95% as long as he doesn't have any more off for a while ignore letter. No need to go in all guns blazing for an automatically generated letter.

Another one of "those" parents

Thanks for the feedback. Just really irritated that the school policy is 'letters for attendance below 90%' - nothing in policy about these letters for 'below 95%'. Will go in with level head next week.

I get them all the time. DD has seriously poor attendance. As long as you communicate with the school and LEA, you should, in theory, be fine.

One of the Ed Welfare Officers I encountered was an interfering shower of shite who couldn't do her job. The second one is lovely and is really helping DD.

Aggression will sort it. Do that.

AnyFucker

another

You lot are making me laugh this evening!!

34 days in school, 2 days off sick + 0 days of unauthorised absence = 94% attendance and unreasonable to expect a letter.

184 days in school, 2 days off sick + 9 days of unauthorised absence = 94% attendance and very reasonable to expect a letter.

It will be an automatically generated letter to be sent when a child falls under the decided percentage (they've quite possibly not updated their website to reflect a recent change to policy). If your child has only missed two days because of the 48 hour rule then you honestly don't need to do anything.

Don't worry anymore about it and don't go and see the head about it. And I say that as a parent, teacher and governor.

They send these out automatically I think. I got one because one of my DC had a lot of medical appointments.

They're automatically generated. 'All guns blazing', 'rip the headteachers head off' ..... or maybe just grow up.

I understand that they are automatically generated but surely they are checked before they are sent out. If school has sent a pupil home for 48 hours then this should be on their record and can be verified.

It’s just not worth getting wound up about. I’d ignore it.

School may have not updated heir website or attendance policy.
Letters tend to be auto generated. He is below the target, the target that the dept for education and lea set, not the school.
Just bin the letter and grow up.

I have been he person responsible for sending these letters. I had to end them to every family below 95% and then a more threatening one below 92%. It didn't matter if the kid had been in hospital for meningitis, or appearing in court. It had to go. The letter. No the kid.