Is this pressure for attendance statistics?

[Princessbananahamock]

Friend has a child with a condition that causes pain however, they get bad days when painkillers just don’t do it. The condition is covered by equality act.

Friend will contact school said they aren’t coming in today.

They will then get a phone call sometimes 15 mins later asking if friend thinks they could just be late! Or normally about 11-12 asking how are they doing do you think they could come in this afternoon and get their mark.

The most recent asking if child could take painkillers and come in for afternoon get their mark. Friend replied they have had all they can take.

i am right in thinking this is really wrong and overstepping.

i feel this is totally wrong they know what’s wrong with the child they have letters from consultants etc.

Yeah it is.

I was a welfare and attendance officer in a school, I hated making calls like that and pressuring parents but the SLT gave me no choice.

It was shit as I was both welfare and attendance. So I’d send children home sick and then have to call the parents and badger them about attendance.

I fucked it off when a frustrated parent punched me. I told her to give the head one too.

Yes it will likely play a part

but no doubt also concerned with this child falling further and further behind!

You told them to punch the head teacher??

Yes I did. She didn’t, but after she’d punched me, called me all the names under the sun and spat in my face, screamed at me to ask why I was such a cunt, I said to ask the head, he was the one who pressured me to constantly pester the parents about illnesses and if she was going to punch me, he deserved one too.

If you’ve got a problem with that, then thank god you’ve not been in a situation Like that for 18 poxy grand a year.

Hope you called the police on this “mother”.

You were assaulted for carrying out the duties given to you by your head teacher.

Encouraging an assault on the head teacher carrying out the duties given to them by OFSTED, makes you almost as bad imo.

And that stands no matter how much you earned.

Was it just verbal on the phone nothing in an email?

Blame the government. This is their ‘thing’ and schools HATE doing it, but have to.

I couldn’t give a shit. You get assaulted at work and see how you handle it.

I have been.

And at no point did I encourage an assault on my manager for carrying out the duties we were both given.

Then I bow down to you. I shall endeavour to learn from you, incase it happens again.

The head was a power hungry arsehole, by the way, who regularly had staff in tears. I wish she had decked him too and a did eveyone else in the school office. No gold stars for us.

Then I bow down to you. I shall endeavour to learn from you, incase it happens again.

It’s pretty basic decency but ok.

Has the child missed more than 15 days due to heir medical needs?

If so every time they make that phone call get the mum to email in

Dear X,

thankyou for the call at X time on X date regarding Ys attendance.

As explained they take painkillers and due to a medical condition these aren’t always effective and therefore they cannot attend at midday to “get their attendance mark”.

Please let me know what you are doing with the LA to support alternative schooling when necessary due to my DS being out of school with diagnosed medical needs for more than 15 days.

many thanks

Xxxx

Have it saved. Send it every time.

Im all for attendance, I work in a school! But I’m more for healthy children having a good start in life and learning what’s necessary within the bounds of their medical needs.

It’s section 19 of the 1996 education act and would suggest quoting that too to remind them that she is aware of their legal duty.

The school and LA will run a mile when the balls batted back to them to discharge their duty!

Oh come on, we all know this did not happen <sigh>

@Colourfulchameleons yes but we’re not allowed to say that 🤣

I'll cavet my post from the outset saying I'm attendance and safeguarding lead in a deprived area, inner city secondary school with a high proportion of high needs families who largely do not place any/much value on education. Attendance improvement is tough.

i am right in thinking this is really wrong and overstepping.

Not really. But it may be you are coming from a place if privilege.

If you're a parent who has decent aspirations for your child - wants your child to achieve good GCSE grades, go to uni, and/or get a stable job, succeed in life, have solid friendships, be able to overcome adversity, step up to challenges etc... then it probably is overstepping.

This sort of parent would generally prioritise getting their child to school as much as they can. Whilst recognising it might not be expected attendance they'd worry as parents about their child's outcomes being lowered if they were missing a lot of school. This sort of parent is scrambling for support and help from school to minimise disadvantage and lower outcomes for their child.

That is privilege speaking tho.

What this school's response is targeting is other sorts of families, not parents I've just described.

Too many families will keep their children off for things that are minor, or easy to manage in school. Most of the families that I work with do this because no one in their home (for several generations) value school. These are not parents who are concerned about their child having lowered outcomes, because they expect their child to have low outcomes. Like they did.

Many schools who work outside of privilege have to try to to raise these low expectations. Attending school is the first step in doing that.

So having to re-teach these families what high expectations and aspiration looks like is part of this.