Attending School
At Cann Bridge we recognise that we play an important role in the life of your son/daughter. School is where he/she will develop new skills, make friends and have access to a wide range of exciting learning and enrichment opportunities. When your son/daughter misses school, they miss out on these vital opportunities and their learning and friendships may suffer. We all want the best for our children and for them to be as independent as possible. In order to achieve this is it important for children and young people to get as much benefit as possible form their time at school.
Good attendance is part of this. While children are in school they can make the most of all the opportunities they are given.
We recognise that for many of the children and young people that attend Cann Bridge School their complex needs and medical issues are often the reason for their absence. We would like to assure you that we understand this and that we will deal with every case of absence on an individual basis. Having said this, we would ask you to bear in mind that whilst 90% might sound very good, a child with 90% attendance is missing a significant amount of learning time at school; the equivalent of approximately 4- weeks a year.
There are times when children will miss school due to illness, medical appointments or attendance at other appointments. We understand and expect this and at these times it is important to ensure you let the school know.
On the first day of absence please ring the school before 9.15am to let the school know your child is off and the reason for the absence.
If your child has a medical or other appointment please let us know in good time before the appointment.
We would ask you to complete a leave of absence form for any time your son/daughter may need time away from school that isn’t covered by an appointment or illness. This would include:
- Holidays — please be very clear about why the holiday cannot be taken in the usual school holidays.
- Special family occasions such as a wedding or a funeral.
- Religious observances.
Holiday/leave of absence forms are available from the school reception.
If you have any problems getting your child to school please talk to us.
If your child is prone to illness or has a medical condition which means they have a lot of absence, then we can work with you and the Local Authority to maximise their time in school to make sure they can get the best of school without this having an impact on their health