Our Attendance Lead is Regena Battaglia.

Our Attendance Officers are Sherrill Towers and Jean Kirk.

Please click here to view our Attendance Policy.

The Department for Education regulations state that Headteachers may not grant any leave of absence during term time unless there are exceptional circumstances.  If exceptional circumstances arise you must take the following steps:

•    Apply in writing as soon as possible to the Headteacher, stating the reason for absence and the duration of leave requested.
•    The Headteacher will respond in writing to your request.
•    This must be done in advance of the Leave of Absence ​

If leave of absence is denied and you take your child/children out of school, the absence will be unauthorised.

It is widely recognised that the educational outcomes and future life chances of children and young people can be significantly impacted upon by periods of absence. We thank you for supporting us in ensuring that your son/daughter attends school, on time, every day.

As a leave of absence will only be granted in exceptional circumstances, it is highly unlikely a leave of absence will be granted for the purposes of a family holiday. The school considers each application for term-time absence individually, taking into account the specific facts, circumstances and relevant background 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 any leave of absence request form, accessible via the attendance office or can emailed upon requests. The headteacher may require evidence to support any request for leave of absence

Rochdale Council Penalty Information:

If you take your child, or children, out of school without authorisation for 5 or more days, in a 10 week school period, we will issue you with a school attendance penalty notice.

The amount you’ll be fined depends on how many times you take your child, or children, out of school without authorisation.

• The first time: you will need to pay £80 per parent, per child. If you don’t pay within 28 days the amount will be increased to £160 per parent, per child.
• The second time within 3 years: you will need to pay £160 per parent, per child within 28 days. There is no reduction in payment.
• The third time within 3 years: the case will be presented directly to the magistrates’ court and a fine of up to £2,500 can be issued.

If you don’t pay your penalty notice on time, we may refer the case to the magistrates’ court.

Pay Rochdale Borough Council – School attendance penalty notice

The pupil’s parent/carer must notify the school of the reason for the absence on the first day of an unplanned absence by 8.00am, or as soon as practically possible, by calling the school office staff and/or attendance officer, who can be contacted via 01706 647761 and press line 2 for pupil absence.

We will mark absence due to physical or mental illness as authorised unless the school has a genuine concern about the authenticity of the illness. If the authenticity of the illness is in doubt, the school may ask the pupil’s parent/carer to provide medical evidence, such as a doctor’s note, prescription, appointment card or other appropriate form of evidence. We will not ask for medical evidence unnecessarily. If the school is not satisfied about the authenticity of the illness, the absence will be recorded as unauthorised, and parents/carers will be notified of this in advance.

Attending a medical or dental appointment will be counted as authorised if the pupil’s parent/carer notifies the school in advance of the appointment.

Parents/carers should inform school via telephone or email and send a note with the pupil to show their class teacher and office staff if they need to leave school early However, we encourage parents/carers to make medical and dental appointments out of school hours where possible. Where this is not possible, the pupil should be out of school for the minimum amount of time necessary. The pupil’s parent/carer must also apply for other types of term-time absence as far in advance as possible of the requested absence.

We value and recognise the importance of good attendance and have systems and processes in place to make sure attendance in managed effectively for all children. We regularly analyse attendance data to identify pupils who have consistently high attendance, those who have shown improvements in their attendance and to identify pupils who may be vulnerable. We will provide support for those who may have lower rates of attendance and again I ask that you work with school if you have any issues with your child being able to attend school regularly. We are always here to support.

School attendance is a vital foundation for children’s success. It is more than just being present—it is about creating opportunities for academic achievement, personal growth, and a brighter future. Each day in school matters and can have a lasting impact. Visit The Importance of Attendance page to learn more about attendance across our Trust.