To tell the school to get lost

[Maisemoo]

So had 4 missed calls from DS10 school today while I was in a meeting so I returned the call as soon as I saw this. Lady on reception told me I had to come in for a meeting regarding sons attendance as is 89.9% which is below the 90% threshold! I explained since Sept son had E. coli (for which hospital letter was shown), D&V and covid, he also finishes 20 mins early every 3rd Wednesday to attend CAHMs due to his ASD and anxiety- again school have the paperwork for this. Receptionist kept telling me I wasn’t in trouble and not going to be told off- to which I replied I am an adult so was not in fear of being ‘told off’. Receptionist said I had to attend Monday at 10.00- I start a new job Monday so told here I won’t be attending- all the absences were genuine and I had no interest in a pointless meeting. Receptionist rang 3 more times with different days and times before getting the hint I was not interested- AIBU to refuse this or should I just of sucked it up and gone

The school has to demonstrate that it is doing everything it can to support your child’s attendance. Given his ASD and anxiety, it is a legitimate concern that some of his illness absences may have been more prolonged than might be the case for a child who is not prone to anxiety. So a meeting would be your chance to explain how you think the school could better support your ds to help minimise the length of his absences, or to reassure them that you believe the illnesses have been purely physical and nothing more than temporary bad luck, and no-one, either you or the school, could have done anything to make them shorter. A meeting is your chance to educate the school on your child’s needs, should you feel it is failing to meet them, and if not, to enable them to put in writing confirmation that everyone is happy that the absences could not have been avoided or reduced and have not been so unsettling for your ds that a pattern of anxiety-based poor attendance is now at risk of being established. If you are generally happy with the school, would it really be so bad to have the meeting requested?

can see why you are annoyed.
I’d email and confirm what each absence relates to and say evidence provided on x date or as advised at time. Just do this to the school- that's all the poor person in the office needs
I’d also argue disability related absence shouldn’t be included. If you like- but best to point that out to the DfE
End by saying you are happy to send him when fit and well but if he’s ill he won’t be in school. You could, but this is basically just saying you won't break the law and only serves to make you feel better and will be met with an exasperated shrug, sped read by the office staff
I’d also add he was able to attend on strike dates if you add another 5 or 6 strike days on as in attendance he’s way over 90%. Oh, save the office staff the teacher bashing and the passive aggressive crap, they get it all day every day and they've just had nine months of it, so cut them some slack. Or write to your MP and ask them to ask the government to fund schools properly so teachers don't need to strike.
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This is why I’m happier with DCs now in independent schools. How the state school communicated with me as a parent was a major factor in switching. You aren’t treated like a child.
YANBU OP.

Gosh all of this over 0.1% where the parents have provided a hospital letter for 2 of the weeks and the other times he was sent home by the school.

No wonder education is in such a state in England everyone chasing the minutiae of targets and no one seeing the big picture

90% attendance isn’t a target…

That would annoy me. He will have made it up by the end of term.
Ignore them.

The office person doesn’t need to do anything with the email though except save it to the file. It’s not requiring a response.
They have repeatedly phoned Op to show they are doing their bit to comply and Op has has replied.
It’s not bashing to point out that stats may be incorrect if there have been additional closures.

Ask her what hers and the other staff attendance is! How much teaching is your son missing due to staff being off? Works both ways...

You should know better then.

Strikes are not 'time off'! The teachers are losing a days pay each time they strike & legally withdraw their labour as part of agreed industrial action. Schools have safeguarding responsibilities, OP should be able to outline reasons explained but the % will likely trigger an investigation anyway. Things have been firmed up since the recent murder through neglect cases in UK of toddlers and v young children. The school receptionist should be up skilled, what a condescending stupid way to speak to any adult.

I’m not sure staff are learning and taking exams you donut

This is a bit of a wonky stat tbh.

It's not that his chances of achievement drop it's that children with low achievement tend to have lower achievement. That is not the same thing.

In that category you will have the children with persistent unexcused absence because they just wander off before reaching the school gate. You will have the children with SEN which also mean that they are frequently ill. You will have the kids who have life limiting illnesses - no shit the cancer patients might get lower exam marks.

Correlation is not the same as causation. A lot of reasons for persistent absence are also reasons for low achievement.

End-of-teaching-year exhausted @Theos? I get it. We all are, but most of us thankfully don't resort to name-calling. As Head of an Independent, I'd have an empty school if staff spoke to parents in the way the Op was spoken to. If staff are off frequently too then very little learning takes place and education is impacted. Accountability, as I mentioned before, works both ways.

https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/the-link-between-absence-and-attainment-at-ks2-and-ks4

I fully understand the correlation between reduced attendance and impact on learning but sickness is sickness and as I said this is the first year DS has been anywhere near under 90%. If they had rang and asked if I wanted a meeting or any support I wouldn’t of been so blunt and probably still wouldn’t of gone as each absence was fully explained but the patronising was not helpful

@Misknit persistent absence covers a whole range of attendance levels- achievement doesn’t fall from 80 odd % to near 50% the second attendance ticks .01 under 90%.

so you won't have to worry if you know that he is achieving really well and is more than capable of working up on any content he has missed.

Whether he is achieving well or not, if he is ill he is ill. Children who are vomiting or have E.Coli are not able to go to school.

The patronising clearly also wasn’t intended. The receptionist needs more training and support (which, knowing staffing levels in schools isn’t available) - they will not be the one holding the meetings, they are just being given the humiliating job of phoning people who are guaranteed to have a hostile reaction to them, so it’s not that surprising if they are not very good at explaining what the meeting will cover and why the school would like you to come in for a meeting.

I’ve had a few letters when my DD’s attendance dipped below 80%. Asked to provide any evidence for any other sickness / appointments. I told them to ask their office as I sent her in most days and they called me to pick her up. I ignore them, DD (15) recently won an award for highest achieving girl in her year group. She had a terrible start to puberty and ended up with a blood transfusion when her first period wouldn’t start and then suffered from low iron / ferritin for ages. They can get lost yes!

When my kids had EColi (caught from a local farm) they were banned from school and nursery for 5wks on public health grounds. So not an awful lot you can do about that! Didn’t impact either of them long term!

Honestly ignore it, I'm speaking from insiders view too
You've explained, have given evidence etc a meeting won't change a thing
Their paperwork is their problem

Explain your point to OFSTED because this is where all this ridiculousness comes from! As a teacher, I hate it. Ticking a bad attendance box on the report of a child that’s had covid, followed by Strep that keep them off for 2 full weeks that’s had 95+ attendance every other year makes me feel like shit!

I can’t believe some people on here are equating a child off sick to teachers striking. It’s a wonder we have any teachers left the way they’re treated and spoken about in this country.

Even if parents don't choose to engage, the inspectors will recognise the work of the school.

^ this is what I don't get. Trying to get meetings with parents where there is clear genuine illness doesn't benefit anyone. If they need to document what they're doing, far better to write to a parent to say we acknowledge attendance has been low due to illness, let us know if we can support etc and leave it at that. Better to use resources wisely not just have pointless meetings to "prove" a school is doing something about attendance to Ofsted.

^ this is what I don't get. Trying to get meetings with parents where there is clear genuine illness doesn't benefit anyone. If they need to document what they're doing, far better to write to a parent to say we acknowledge attendance has been low due to illness, let us know if we can support etc and leave it at that. Better to use resources wisely not just have pointless meetings to "prove" a school is doing something about attendance to Ofsted.
I'd agree. I think the consistency approach is probably taken to avoid claims of favouritism even though schools aren't daft and know when a child has been unlucky with a couple of long illnesses Vs the ones who have odd days off.

I think as long as school have made contact with a parent at various trigger points to have an appropriate discussion for the situation then that should be enough. In the OP's situation, a phonecall from the relevant leader saying what you've outlined should suffice in my opinion.

Ahhh, but the language teacher shortage is even worse, as they've been chipping away at MFL for the best part of 20 years (so, Labour as well as the Tories). I think it was in 2004 that MFL stopped being compulsory at GCSE. And then the wonder why no language teachers are coming through....when fewer and fewer kids take languages at GCSE and A-Level, and language departments have been shut in universities, right left and centre, it's hardly rocket science, is it?! And all that is before you add Brexit into the mix.

As a German graduate, it's something I feel passionately about. I absolutely loved my year abroad and then having the opportunity to do my PhD in German history and go on many archive visits. My twenties would have been so much poorer without this opportunity and I think that it's tragic that fewer and fewer young people will have those chances. Speaking the language of the country you're in or visiting is so empowering. Apologies, I will jump off my soap box and stop derailing the thread.

OP I've not read this to the end, but it sounds wholly disproportionate. Even my youngest, who had an 86% attendance record earlier in the year because of various bouts of illnesses in the Autumn term only got a snotty letter. And that was despite us taking them out of school 4 days before the Easter holidays started. (Both kids have hit over 90% now).