At Aylestone School attendance matters for all our students and we are all working together to ensure that students achieve their maximum academic potential. It is a long-established fact that poor school attendance can have a negative impact on academic progress. Recent National studies have shown students who are able to maintain good attendance of 95% and above are 80% more likely to achieve 5+ GCSE grades 9-4.

Please remember that the school day starts promptly at 8.45am and therefore students should in school by 8:40am at the latest in readiness for the start the day.   If your child is unable to attend school, it is vital that you call the absence line, for every day your child is absent on 01432 357371 and leave a clear message detailing your child’s name, tutor group and reason for absence.  For lengthy absences, i.e. more than 3 consecutive days you may be asked to provide a medical evidence from a healthcare professional.  We would ask all parents to please make all appointments out of school hours, where at all possible, as it can be very disruptive to learning.

Please be aware, the Department for Education regard any student’s attendance which is below 90% as a persistent absence, this means that we will closely monitor students who are not achieving an overall attendance of 95% and above.   A 90% attendance rate over a child’s whole time at school (average 19 days’ absence each year) would mean that by the end of Year 11, the equivalent of over a school year will have been missed.

• Annual attendance of 95% is 10 days that your child has been absent (50 lessons missed)
• Annual attendance of 90% is 19 days absent, that is almost 4 school weeks (95 lessons missed)
• Annual attendance of 85% is 29 days absent, that is almost 6 school weeks (145 lessons missed)
• Annual Attendance of 80% is 38 days absent, that is over 7 school weeks (190 lessons missed)

Combining good attendance and good punctuality ensures that your child has the best possible preparation for taking their place in the wider community beyond Aylestone School and into the workplace or further study.  We would therefore ask that you support your child and the school enabling us together, to provide those basic principles that will lead to a happy and successful adult equipped with an education, self-belief and commitment to taking their place in the global market.

Further Information

Mr P Lewis

Email:plewis@aylestone.hereford.sch.uk