Unauthorised Absence

[RosemaryandThyme]

I have just opened a letter from school informing me that my children have an unauthorised absence as I had them out of school for a day without giving notice - I just wondered if anyone knew if there were further implications to this ? ie can the children be asked to leave permenantly?
Thank you

No repercussions at all unless you make a habit of it and attendance drops below whatever the local authority have set as the trigger - something like less than 85% attendance will usually trigger a visit from the Educational Welfare Officer etc.

Why didn't you give notice? It's always best to ask, even if you know the answer will be no. Ofsted/LAs are obsessed with attendance stats,which is why it's very hard for a Head to allow an absence - but at least if they know your child will be absent you'll keep on better terms with the school.

What Hassledge said.

EWOs here get involved with any child who has under 87% attendance - and that's authorised or unauthorised. There won't be any repercussions for having just one unauthorised absence though.

Thank you, am in tears here - I know the adult thing would have been to ask before-hand but I was cowardly, the day involved mums' participating in a group activity with the children and I just did not have the confidence to do it, I took the "lets just hide route" - knowing it would make me (even more) unpopular with the staff. It was just a bridge too far for me.

Don't be upset.

I think you need to perhaps find a way of boosting your confidence though, if a letter has had this much effect on you, as well as you feeling that you can't join in with events at school with your own children and feeling that you're unpopular :)

Oh don't feel bad - next time just ask for the request for absence form. Fill it in, and it will come back saying "request refused". Then if you want to go ahead, go ahead - but at least the office won't be left thinking "I wonder where Little Jimmy is?"

I'm not condoning unauthorised absences - I think kids should be in school during school time - but everyone has something pop up from time to time, and the Head will know this. And the Head might have authorised it - they do have some leeway and if overall attendance is good that will help.

Yes definately need to feel better able to join in with things, am very vulnerable to critisism at the moment, christmas seems to make me even more wobbly.
My childrens school attendance is really good (just luck that the times they have been poorly have been in school holidays) -

Posemaryand thymme, I'm sorry your upset. There will be no repercussions from one unauthorised absence atall, the school is trying to intimidte you into not doing it again, because it affects THEIR statistics, they are not actually worried abotut a child missing a single day.

I do think though, if you feel brave enough, you should let the school know why you felt you couldn't come in. You should not have been put in a posistion where you flet like this. The school probably didn't realise how it was making parents fell, nad if you speak up, they might think twice about doing it again.

You might need to be prepared for a bit of flak though, just stay calm and repeat your reason.

there would have been other parents not there, though - what about all those who work full time? their children would have been at school...

why did you feel it necessary to take your children out instead of just not go yourslef? (not criticising, just curious?)

This is the thing about having a small village school (94 children) parents are requested a lot during working hours (I've been invited and gone to three assemblies, one dress rehersal, one farm trip and the xmas fair just this term, all start at 2 o'clock, the farm trip was all morning), every child has either a parent, a grandparent or an employee (nannies/au-pairs/childminder)with them.
It is interesting that there might be a view that I shouldn't have been in a position where I felt the best alternative was to take my children out of school - I hadn't thought about it like that.