Attendance & Progress

“The children who are most happy and successful in school are those with the best attendance.”

Academy Senior Attendance Chamption: Sarah Durbin / Natalie Rutherford
Absence line phone no: 01604 751165
Children need to be in school by 8.45am to avoid being marked as late.

Kings Heath Primary Academy is also part of the Attendance Hub with the DfE, working with other schools to improve attendance.

We would like to thank our parents for their commitment to their child’s attendance.

The majority of our parents ensure that their child attends regularly and on time, meeting our academy expectation of at least 97% attendance over the year.

Fortunately, we have very few parents who do not support their child in this.

We love to see the happy faces of the children as they get to school on time to play with their friends before sitting down together, ready to learn. Children who do not get to school on time or miss some days of school altogether find it more difficult to make friends and to catch up on their learning. Please remember that our school day starts promptly at 08.45 and children who are late miss the beginning of their reading session, an important skill for them to learn.

If your child is ill

We know that sometimes your child may be unable to attend because they feel unwell.

In this case please contact the main office on 01604 751165 and leave a message telling us the reason for your child’s absence, before 08.30 each day. Some parents think that their child may be better off at home if they are ill, but generally, we are happy to have them in school and will keep a close eye on them to make sure that they are ok if you ask us to. We have also produced a helpful leaflet to help you to decide whether your child is well enough to come to school which can be downloaded below. We use NHS guidance to advise and you can access this yourself by clicking here.

If we do not hear from you first thing in the morning and your child is not in school, then we will try and contact you as quickly as possible to ensure that your child is safe. This could be by text, telephone or home visit. Please rest assured that we always pursue this until we are satisfied so you know that your child’s welfare is important to us.

Other Reasons for Absence

Most of our parents recognise that their children are happiest and more successful in school when they attend regularly.

For that reason, they do not ask for holidays during term time, because they know how damaging this can be for their child’s education. Whilst it may be tempting to take advantage of lower holiday prices in term time, this can seriously unsettle your child when they return from holiday as they will have missed learning and the social aspects of school.

Of course, we realise that you may wish to ask for a leave of absence for a reason other than a holiday, such as to attend a sporting event, take part in a performance or for other family reasons. In that case please download a copy of the form at the bottom of this page, complete it and return to the academy as soon as possible and prior to the date requested.

If there is any other reason why you or your child is finding it difficult to attend school regularly and on time, then please do contact Natlie Rutherford, Terry Lukunga or Rachel Geddes who can help. Our pastoral team has already helped many other parents and children in this way. Seeking early help, no matter the issue, can help you to avoid any fines for non-attendance which can be very costly and embarrassing.