Attendance

Absence from College

Any absence due to illness must be reported on the first day by telephoning the absence line on 01580 881264 or by e-mailing the Attendance Officer at spacker@robertsbridge.org.uk giving the name of your child, their form and the reason for their absence. Please inform the college by 10:00am on the day of absence.

How good is your child’s attendance?

Giving your child the best start in life is every parents wish. The opportunity to learn and make progress is essential to improve their life chances.

97 % & above	Your child’s attendance is above 97% They are absent less than six days in the school year They are highly likely to achieve the best grades for their ability, enabling them to continue their studies and raise their earning potential in the world of work
95 % & above	Your child’s attendance is 95% plus They are absent less than 10 days in the school year They will probably achieve grades that will allow them to continue their studies and raise their earning potential in the world of work
90 – 95%	Your child’s attendance is 90-95% They are missing up to 20 days in each school year – a full month! This amount of absence will make progress more difficult and reduce their level of success
80-90%	Your child’s attendance is between 80-90% This means they are absent up to 40 days in each school year – EIGHT WEEKS!! Missing this much time will make it extremely difficult for them to keep up in lessons and make progress
Below 80%	Your child’s attendance is below 80% YOU NEED TO TAKE ACTION NOW! This amount of absence will seriously affect their earning potential and life chances. As a parent you may face court action!

Your child’s future is important. Help us to help them by reinforcing that Every Lesson Counts!

For further details, see the East Sussex County Council advice below:
Click here for Advice for Students on Attendance
Click here for Advice for Parents on Attendance

Term Time Holidays

The law does not grant parents an automatic right to take their child out of school during term time. Any absence from school will disrupt your child’s learning. You may consider that a holiday will be educational, but your child will still miss out on the teaching that their peers will receive during your holiday. Children returning from a term time holiday are unprepared for the lessons which build on the teaching they have missed, and teachers then have to give more time to help them catch up on work. This poses a potential risk of the under-achievement of other students in the class. This is something we all have a responsibility to avoid.

The Department for Education allows a Headteacher the discretion to consider authorising a holiday in term time only in “exceptional circumstances”. If you consider that your request for a holiday is exceptional you will need to complete the form attached to this notification. A response will be sent to you as soon as possible.
Click here for the Term Time Holiday Request form