Attendance
Our attendance lead responsible for championing and improving attendance is Mrs. Armstrong [Headteacher].
At Benedict Biscop C.E. Academy, we are committed to meeting our obligation with regards to school attendance through our whole-school culture and ethos.
We fully believe that good attendance is central to raising standards in education and ensuring all pupils can fulfil their potential and, we have a culture of ‘attendance is everyone’s business’.
Pupils need to attend school regularly to benefit from their education. Missing out on lessons leaves children vulnerable to falling behind.
For these reasons, the we will proactively work in partnership with all parents/carers to promote and secure good attendance and overcome any barriers through proactive, strong partnership working and a supportive environment.
Please refer to the school’s attendance policy for information regarding our approach to championing and improving attendance. Please click here for our policies page.
Leave of absence
At Benedict Biscop C. E. Academy we will grant leave of absence when a pupil needs to be absent from school with permission following the DfE guidance of Working Together to Improve Attendance 2024.
These circumstances are:
- Taking part in a regulated performance or employment abroad: in line with a licence issued by a local authority or Justice of the Peace or a body of persons approval (BOPA). (For full details please see code C1)
- Attending an interview: for entry into another educational institution or for future employment where requested in advance by a parent the pupil normally lives with
- Study leave: for public examinations, as agreed in advance with a parent the pupil normally lives with. Please note this does not include any internal examinations such as mocks as study leave should not be granted in such cases.
- A temporary, time-limited part-time timetable: where the pupil is of compulsory school age, both the parent who the pupil normally lives with and school agree the pupil should temporarily be educated on a part-time basis for exceptional reasons and have agreed the times and dates when the pupil will be expected to attend school as part of that timetable.
The Headteacher Mrs Armstrong may grant other leave of absence requests during term time if we consider there to be ‘exceptional circumstances’.
Exceptional circumstances are defined as ‘unusual’ or ‘rare’ and each request will be considered individually, taking in to account the specific facts, circumstances and context behind the request.
Any request should be submitted as soon as it is anticipated and, where possible, at least 2 weeks before the absence, and in accordance with the Exceptional Circumstances Leave of Absence from accessible here via our ‘useful forms’ page.
Irregular attendance update
We would also like to remind parents that Together for Children has recently issued changes regarding the issuing of a fixed penalty notice for irregular attendance. Please see below for further information:
*Please refer to Sunderland City Council’s information on attendance and penalty notices for further information:
