At St Silas CE Primary Academy, we are dedicated to ensuring that all children flourish. Excellent attendance and punctuality are fundamental to the educational process, providing children with the best foundation for life. Consistent absence or lateness can negatively impact a child’s social, academic, and long-term prospects. The Government classifies children with an absence rate below 90% as persistent absentees. Generally, persistently absent children perform less well than their peers in national assessments and may struggle more with forming friendships. We aim for every child to have attendance at least the national average of 96%.
While attendance is monitored by all staff, Mr Hadwin, our Attendance Lead, 'Champions Attendance' and collaborates closely with children, staff, parents, governors, and Mrs R. Patel, the Pupils and Family Wellbeing Coordinator, to ensure effective attendance procedures are in place. This role involves diligently monitoring every child's attendance and offering support to families to help them improve it. In line with Government expectations, we urge parents to work with the school to prevent their child from missing out on their education.

Please ensure that your child arrives at school punctually. Your child will be considered to be late if they arrive after 8.40am. If your child is unable to attend school due to illness please let the school office know before 8.30am. The school gates open at 8.30am and the school day starts at 8.40am. The school day ends at 3.10pm. Should you need to speak with Mrs R.Patel, please contact the school office at 01254 698447 or email stsoffice@cidari.co.uk .
Students in Key Stage 2 (KS2) who did not meet the expected standard in reading, writing, and math had a noticeably higher overall absence rate compared to those who did meet the standard.
Specifically:
- The overall absence rate for pupils not meeting the expected standard was 4.7%.This is higher than the 3.5% rate observed among pupils who met the expected standard.
- The difference is even greater when compared to the pupils who achieved the higher standard, whose absence rate was just 2.7%.
Children who attend school every day for a whole term, in one academic year, receive a bronze 100% badge. Children who attend school everyday for two whole terms, in one academic year, receive a silver badge. Children who attend school everyday, in one academic year, receive a gold badge.
There are weekly Perfect Week stickers for children who attend school on time everyday in that week and also have no behavioural incidents in the same week.
In August 2024, the government introduced Working Together to Improve Education.
Working Together to improve School Attendance 2024
Further information and support can be found in the following documents:
Attendance
